
Class _LJELiQAi 

Book (0S4 

Cojjyriglit W 



COKlfRIGHT DEPOSCL 



PEDAGOGICAL PEP 



A Book of Help and Inspiration 
For Teachers 



Edited By 

Mary E. Owen 
Helen Mildred Owen 




p. A. OWEN publishing COMPANY 
DANSVILLE, NEW YORK 






Copyright, 1922 
F. A. OWEN PUBUSHING COMPANY 



JUL3i;22 

©CI.A681153 



To 

The School Teachers 
OF America 



FOREWORD 



The aim of Pedagogical Pep is to help and inspire 
the school teachers of America. To this end an open 
invitation was extended to the readers of Normal In- 
structor-Primary Plans to enter, in a prize contest, 
articles that would be of assistance and inspiration 
to their fellow teachers. 

Teachers from every state in the Union, as well as 
from our territorial possessions and a few foreign 
countries, responded to our invitation with articles 
telling of various phases of their experience in school 
work. The response was both enthusiastic and gen- 
erous. More than two thousand manuscripts were 
submitted for the contest, out of which one hundred 
and twenty-nine prize articles have been chosen to 
make Pedagogical Pep. 

The articles in this book deal with the teaching of 
school subjects, with the children, with the communi- 
ty, and with the schoolroom itself. The selection of 
each article was based upon its educational value. 

The judges for this contest were Mr. E. J. Bonner, 
Principal, City Normal School, Rochester, New York, 
chairman; Miss Harriet Stillman, Primary Super- 
visor, Rochester, New York; Miss Rena C. Stebbins, 
Teacher of Education, City Normal School, Roches- 
ter, New York; Mr. William E. Hawley, Principal, 
Francis Parker School, Rochester, New York; Mr. 



FOREWORD 

George D. Taylor, Principal, John Walton Spencer 
School, Rochester, New York ; and Mrs. Elizabeth P. 
Bemis and Mr. W. J. Beecher, Editors, Normal In- 
structor-Primary Plans. 

The progressive teacher is always looking for ways 
in which she may make her work more effective. 
She turns to the experiences of other teachers in or- 
der that she may learn how they have solved the 
problems that confront her. Their success gives her 
courage to fry the same method or to adapt it to her 
needs. This is the kind of constructive and inspira- 
tional help which we hope the readers of this vol- 
ume will receive. We feel sure that its readers will 
be those teachers who are daily striving to find the 
most satisfactory solution of every problem that 
arises in their teaching experience. 

The Editors. 



EXTRA PRIZES AWARDED 

Otie thousand dollars was originally offered as prizes for the 
best material submitted by teachers for publication in Pedagogi- 
cal Pep. The number of manuscripts submitted tvas so great 
and the standard so high that a larger book has beeii made than 
was contemplated and the amount distributed in prizes in- 
creased to tivo thousand dollars, the writer of each article se- 
lected for publication being awarded a cash prize. 

The Publishers. 



CONTENTS 

The Parent and the Community 

Getting Them to Come 17 

The School Newspaper — a Force in the Com- 
munity 21 

A Miniature Reproduction of Our Community 

on the Sand Table 23 

A Parents' Institute 25 

How to Produce a Community Pageant 28 

Go-to-School Week 31 

Securing Equipment for the School 

Our Library Obtained Through Community In- 
terest 33 

A Novel Way to Secure a Phonograph 36 

Playground Equipment Earned and Made by 

the Pupils 38 

How We Procured a Projection Lantern 41 

Our New Piano the Result of a Court Trial. ... 43 
A Beautiful Painting Secured Through an Ap- 
preciation of Art 46 

School Management 

Missing the Fun Reformed My Mischievous 
Pupils 52 

The School Bully Transformed Through the 
Power of Love . 56 

Solving the Discipline Problem on the Play- 
ground 59 



CONTENTS 

Find the Child's Interest and Turn It into the 

Proper Channel 62 

Training in Right Habits Is True Discipline .... 64 

The Transformation of an Unruly School 67 

Good Physical Conditions Essential to Discipline 70 

Starting the Year with a Clean Slate 73 

Let Us Discipline Ourselves and Study Our 

Pupils 75 

The Forgetful Child 79 

How I Solved the Problem of Punctuality 82 

What an Attractive Schoolroom Means to the 

Child 83 

Desks in Order! 85 

Our Improvement Club and Its Work 86 

Pertaining to School Grounds — an "Original" . . 89 

Seat Work 

Seat Work Provided by Many School Subjects. . 91 
The Appeal of Seat Work Not Limited to the Eye 

and Hand 96 

An Educational Seat Work Outfit That Has 

Proved Successful 100 

Profitable Primary Seat Work 103 

Reading 

Creating a Desire to Read 107 

Primary Reading Devices 109 

First-Year Phonics as a Game 112 

How I Teach Reading in the First Grade 116 

Introducing Dramatics into Reading 120 

The Importance of Silent Reading 123 

"Doing Errands" Makes Silent Reading a Joy. . 126 

A Concrete Lesson in the Study of Literature. . 128 

Leading My Pupils to Read Good Books 131 

Knowing a Few Authors Well 134 

Instilling a Love for the Best Writings 136 



CONTENTS 

Handwriting 

Handwriting Defects Overcome by a Great In- 
centive 140 

Every Written Lesson Should Be a Writing 

Lesson 145 

Handwriting Motivated by Interest 150 

A Successful Method of Teaching Handwriting 154 
Handwriting Made a Live Subject by a Teach- 
er's Enthusiasm 155 

Devices for Encouraging Improvement in Hand- 
writing 157 

Arithmetic 

Devices for Drill in the Four Fundamental 
Operations 161 

Visualizing Primary Arithmetic 163 

Arithmetic Motivated by the Children's Interest 
in Baseball 165 

How I Secured Speed and Accuracy in Multipli- 
cation 168 

Arithmetic Made a Live Subject in the Curric- 
ulum 169 

The Play Element Introducted into Arithmetic . . 171 

The House That the Class Built 172 

Spelling 

Defects and Remedies in the Teaching of Spell- 
ing . 176 

The Importance of the Assignment in the Spell- 
ing Lesson 179 

A Spelling Match Between Parents and Pupils 
Arouses Interest 181 

A Successful Method of Teaching Spelling. . . . 186 

Spelling Should Occupy an Important Place in 
the Curriculum 188 



CONTENTS 

Language 
Language Lessons That Lead the Children to 

Talk 192 

Better Speech Stimulated by Posters 194 

Putting Pep into an English Lesson 196 

Interest Aroused in Correct Speech 198 

The Right Word in the Right Place 200 

The Three Types of Letters 204 

Letter Writing Links Our School with the Out- 
side World 207 

Correspondence with Another School Motivates 

Letter Writing 211 

Spontaneous Expression Essential to Good Com- 
positions 213 

Use of the Dictionary 

Introducing the Dictionary 218 

Systematized Instruction in Dictionary Use .... 220 

Exit "Mrs. Malaprop" 223 

Music 
Good Results Obtained in Music in the First 

and Second Grades 226 

How I Taught Third-Grade Music Without a 

Supervisor 228 

An Appreciation of Music Gained Through a 

Study of Grand Opera 231 

Drawing 

Self-Expression Through Drawing 233 

When Children Love to Draw 236 

Relating Drawing to a Practical Problem 239 

Children Led to See and Express the Beauty in 
Things That Grow 243 

Nature Study 
Studying Nature's Wonders with the Children . . 248 



CONTENTS 

Westover Junior Audubdn Society 250 

How I Happened to Teach Nature Study 252 

The Ripple-View Bird Study Club 254 

The Joys of Nature Study 258 

Bird Life in Our Community 262 

Geography 
Local Geography as a Step to World Geography 267 
How to Make Geography Interesting and Up-to- 

Date 272 

How Geography Became a Joy to My Pupils. . . 274 
Government Material a Valuable Aid in Teach- 
ing Geography 276 

The Travel Club 280 

Let Your Town Teach Your School 284 

History 

How I Enlivened a Dead History Period 289 

The Use of Stories in Teaching History 290 

The Dramatic Element in History 291 

A Helpful History Game 293 

An Interesting History Notebook 294 

Use the Child's Love of Moving Pictures in 

Teaching History 296 

Learning by Doing 298 

Current Events in the Rural School 301 

Keeping Up with the Busy World 302 

"We Know!" 303 

Civics 
Teaching the Meaning of the Constitution to 

Primary Children 305 

The Little Citizens' Club 307 

How Civics Was Changed from a Dry to an In- 
teresting Subject 309 

Thrift an Essential of Good Citizenship 312 

Relating Civics to Everyday Life 314 



CONTENTS 

Health Education 

The Bank of Health 317 

Health Education in Place of Anatomy and 

Physiology 319 

A Concrete Demonstration of the Value of 

Nutrition 322 

The Children's Health Band 324 

Cleanliness the First Law of Health 325 

Relating School Activities to Health 328 

Hot Lunches in Spite of Great Obstacles 331 

Let the Children Prepare the Hot Lunch 333 

The Hot Lunch as a Project 335 

Miscellaneous 
Seven Qualifications of a Successful Teacher. . . 339 
The Value of the Personal Touch in the School- 
room 342 

A Sense of Humor 346 

The Oil of Courtesy 348 

Relating All School Subjects to the Needs of the 

Foreign Child 350 

How I Teach Oral English to Foreign Children 354 

The Most Successful Story I Ever Told 358 

Writing Their Own Play 361 

How to Give a Successful School Entertainment 364 
Construction Work Motivated by the Furnishing 

of a Room 368 

Vitalizing a Rural School Through Manual 

Training 371 

A Novel Way to Create an Interest in Sewing, . 374 
How I Made My Second-Grade Children Want 

More Education 376 

Teachers! Use Standardized Tests! 381 



PEDAGOGICAL PEP 



THE PARENT AND THE COMMUNITY 



GETTING THEM TO COME 

By" Manthei Howe 

Every teacher finds it difficult to get the parents to 
visit school. The problem varies only in degree. 
Where there is an up and doing Parent-Teacher Asso- 
ciation the difficulty is not so great. But in the town 
where the individual teacher has to be the "parental 
go-getter," she will need all of her wits and a super- 
abundance of tact to establish visiting relations with 
the parents. 

Some canny observer of human nature once laid 
down a diverting theory of how to get people inter- 
ested. His rule amounts to this — if you want to keep 
yourself vividly in a person's mind, get in debt to that 
person. 

It is not a bad idea at all! Just recall the times 
when you have loaned money to a friend. Immediately 
you became interested in what that friend did ; in his 
good or bad fortune. 

Try this method on the mothers of your pupils. It 
will work. The suggestion is not that you borrow pa- 
per and stamps and street car fares from the parents, 
but that you put yourself and your school under ob- 
ligations to them. 

During the first month of school see that you visit 
the mother of every youngster in the room. These 



18 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

calls need not be long. If you are as keen a student of 
human nature as you should be, if you are to be a good 
teacher, a fifteen-minute call will tell you a great deal 
about the type of woman little Johnnie's mother is. It 
will enable you to discover her ability or her hobby. 
You may notice an unusually fine picture in her house, 
an odd bit of pottery, a plant, or an interesting relic. 

After you have left the house jot down in your note- 
book the outstanding quality of that parent, her hobby, 
her talent, or her pet possession. File these notes for 
future reference. Then borrow from her! 

Mothers stay away from the schoolhouse for four 
reasons, — because they are busy ; because they are not 
sure of a cordial welcome; because they just keep put- 
ting off the visit ; and because they are not interested. 

In all fairness to the mothers, it should be noted 
that only a very small percentage stay away from the 
school because they are not interested. And if the 
teacher borrows from them intelligently even these 
mothers can be coaxed to work up a bit of enthusiasm 
as to what is being done in the school. 

One of the best examples of the way this theory 
works out is found in the case of a bright, mischievous 
boy in the third grade. Collin's mother is one of the 
most popular and busy young matrons in town. Her 
son was getting into mischief continually, but it 
seemed next to impossible to get her to come to school 
where she could compare his deportment with that of 
the other children in his grade. 

Then Collin's teacher happened to attend an after- 
noon tea and heard Collin's mother in a whistling solo. 
Immediately the young teacher annexed the whistler 
for a number at the following Friday afternoon's pro- 
gram at school. It was a definite invitation, a definite 



THE PARENT AND THE COMMUNITY 19 

engagement, and so the young mother graciously 
promised to come. Of course, the children enjoyed it 
and Collin's mother was in equally good humor, for 
she had done a favor, had given something to the 
teacher and the school. From then on she had a per- 
sonal interest in the doings of that grade and that 
teacher. She made other visits and Collin, disciplined 
a bit by his mother, settled down to make a record in 
something besides low deportment. 

Every mother, we grant you, cannot contribute any- 
thing so spectacular as whistling; but there will be 
some possession, hobby, or talent that you can use. 
Possibly the parent will own a beautiful plant that she 
will be glad to loan to the school for a few days. She 
may have something to tell of a pioneer town where 
she once lived. The family may own an old patchwork 
quilt, or some historical relic with an interesting 
history. 

Most of these "mother contributions" can be cor- 
related with school work in reading, composition, 
spelling, geography, or drawing. The alert, ingenious 
teacher will find it possible to use this "borrowing 
method" to establish a real and lasting bond of inter- 
est between the home and the school. 

"But," some busy teacher will object, "that works 
very well perhaps when there are only twenty or 
twenty-four pupils in a room. It becomes a real task 
when that visiting means calling on thirty-five or forty 
mothers living some distance apart." In such a case 
the Visitor's Book will be found an effective "parental 
go-getter." 

The construction of the book itself may be made the 
subject of drawing work, or special privilege work 
during the first month of school. Have as many pages 



20 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

as there are children in the room. Each child may 
draw, paint, or cut out the decoration for the page that 
bears his name. When all the pages are finished, they 
may be fastened together with ribbon, raffia, or clips, 
loose-leaf fashion. The covers for the book may be 
made of stiff bristol board, cretonne- covered paper, or 
mounting board. The decorations or design may be put 
on the covers by the teacher or by the child who had the 
best record for the first month of school. 

The book completed, the grade is ready to make use 
of it. Explain to the boys and girls that as each par- 
ent visits the room he is to sign his name on the page 
bearing his child's name. Then Johnnie or Mary will 
have the privilege of writing up in brief, on the same 
page in the book, the work done during the session 
when Mother or Father visited school. A blank is left 
at the bottom of the page, and each time thereafter 
that a parent calls, his child places a silver star in this 
space on his page, as a record of the visit. 

If you have a kodak take a picture of the children 
and paste one on each page of the book, giving each 
child his page to take home on the last day of school. 
The Visitor's Book is not much work and it will in- 
terest the children as well as the parents. 

There will be rivalry between the children to see 
whose parents will come first and of tenest. An eager 
youngster coaxing, "Mother, come and visit my room,'* 
will usually accomplish more than the teacher's most 
earnest efforts. When the children get their parents 
to come to school it is our duty to make them want to 
come often. 

If a teacher can get half a dozen silver stars on 
each page, she may congratulate herself on having 
made a record in getting parents to come to school. 



THE PARENT AND THE COMMUNITY 21 

THE SCHOOL NEWSPAPER— A FORCE 
IN THE COMMUNITY 

By Mary Bladon 

Two years ago I went into a rural school where the 
pupils represented ten different families. The school 
building and grounds were neglected; the equipment 
was either broken or lacking; and the community, di- 
vided by neighborhood differences into various factions, 
was far from unified. The children had no pride in the 
school, and were grouped in cliques on the playground. 
.While no one was hostile to me, neither was anyone 
very appreciative of my efforts. Quite often some 
precocious youngster would say, "Mother doesn't see 
what good that will do." "Father says they didn't do 
that way when he went to school." 

I believed that any school, to be entirely successful, 
needed a community spirit behind it. I tried commu- 
nity meetings and contests, but they were only fairly 
successful, because some of the parents would not 
attend. 

Finally, I decided to prepare a monthly paper con- 
taining a record of the month's work, and what we 
hoped to accomplish the coming month. I had a sec- 
ondhand typewriter, and a homemade hectograph. 
The children hectographed the copies and thought it 
great fun. The first year I furnished the paper for 
printing. The second year the parents contributed 
the price of the material. Next year the school board 
has promised to furnish all material, and every family 
in the district is to receive the newspaper, whether 
it has children in school or not. 

The newspaper has accomplished much in our 
school. The following are some of the chief results: 



22 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

1. A knowledge of parliamentary law. Business 
meetings are held every month to elect new editors for 
the following edition. I insist that these meetings be 
businesslike. 

2. A healthy spirit of rivalry among the various edi- 
torial staffs, who try to make their paper better than 
the preceding ones. 

3. A common interest which has eliminated cliques 
on the school grounds. 

4. Good compositions and articles expressed in 
clear, concise English carefully revised by the children 
themselves. Only the best is accepted. 

5. Better attendance. A special Honor Roll for 
regular attendance is published. 

6. Observance of Health Rules. There is also an 
Honor Roll for those who obtain a certain percentage 
in their health work. 

The results in the community were very gratifying. 
These may be summed up as follows: 

1. General interest. One or more of the patrons 
are asked each month to contribute a short article re- 
garding some phase of school work. 

2. Contributions of books and magazines for the 
school library. One contribution, publicly commended, 
usually calls forth others. Sometimes the patrons do 
not know what we need until we tell them. 

3. An increase in visits from parents. In each issue 
of our monthly newspaper we urge them to visit us, 
and we publish the names of those who came to see us 
the previous month, together with any of their re- 
marks which are of school interest. 

4. Any patron may have a pertinent question re- 
garding school work answered in the magazine by the 
pupil editors, myself, or the county superintendent. 



THE PARENT AND THE COMMUNITY 23 

5. Interest in the hot lunch. This project had oeen 
strenuously condemned, because misunderstood. The 
pupils who desired it were indefatigable in finding ar- 
guments and statistics. The parents finally gave grudg- 
ing, then tolerant, and then enthusiastic consent. 

The community has shown its interest by repairing 
the school building and furnishing equipment. The 
children keep the school grounds attractive. They all 
take pride in the school property, and in the school 
activities. Not much money has been expended, but a 
great deal of good will and hard work. 

The newspaper, I firmly believe, started the ball roll- 
ing the right way. Every push gave it an added im- 
petus, until now the school is a community interest. 
The plain truth, stated in a tactful and friendly way, 
and reaching every patron at the critical time accom- 
plished results far in excess of the effort expended. 

A MINIATURE REPRODUCTION OF OUR 
COMMUNITY ON THE SAND TABLE 

By Marie Case 

Most children of school age are absolutely indiffer- 
ent to their surroundings. If attention is not called to 
certain things, they rarely ever see them at all. Last 
Spring I happened opportunely upon a plan which 
aroused the children's interest in the community and, 
later, the interest of the parents as well. 

I helped the children form a miniature reproduc- 
tion of the community upon the sand table. Small 
pieces of glass represented the creek; sprinkles of 
gravel marked the roads; small sticks with strips of 
paper attached, bearing the name of each place, 
showed the sites of houses, bams, and dump-heaps. 



24 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Of course, there were many changes to be made 
each day, as the children now saw things of interest in 
the community which they had never seen before. 
When our toy community was completed, we began a 
systematic study of the real community. 

First, we talked — or rather the children talked, 
guided by suggestions from me — of the undesirable 
things in the community, taking one at a time and dis- 
cussing ways and means of disposing of it. When we 
had finally decided upon a way to rid ourselves of the 
undesirable object, it was taken from our community 
sand table. We proceeded in this manner until all un- 
desirable things that could be removed from a real 
community were removed from our sand table. 

We then started the improvement of what was left. 
Much stress was put upon the necessity of clean back 
yards. Each day brought new and exciting accounts 
of things found and done in the back yards at home. 
These improvements were indicated on the sand table 
by the erection of a small paper flag in the yard cor- 
responding to that in which the work was being car- 
ried on. 

When improvements were completed our task was 
to put desirable things in the places formerly occupied 
by the undesirable things. Round flower beds were 
made on the sand table, and later reproduced by the 
children — many times enlarged — on their lawns at 
home. Morning-glory vines were trained over un- 
sightly buildings which could not be removed. 

Our next problem was an old, unused one-room log 
building near the schoolhouse. It was very unsightly, 
so we asked the owner if we might improve its ap- 
pearance. Being given permission to do so, we set to 
work. 



THE PARENT AND THE COMMUNITY 25 

We conceived the idea of converting it into a club 
house. We laid a neat walk to the road, planted flow- 
ers in the yard, and placed two rustic seats under a 
tree near the house. With the help of the older boys 
and girls and a few dollars from an ice cream supper, 
the interior of the house was made attractive. 

When our work was completed we arranged a short 
program for a community social at our club house. 
This meeting was largely attended and served to bring 
the patrons of the school into closer touch with one 
another, as did the other meetings which followed 
each week. Both old and young looked forward to 
these little socials with much interest. 



A PARENTS' INSTITUTE 

By Gertrude O. Jones 

All teachers and educators will agree that the com- 
mon cause of dissension and school difficulties is the 
lack of understanding and sympathy between the 
school and the home. 

In most states there is a law which compels the 
teachers to attend an Institute at least once each year. 
I have hoped that state legislation might give us such 
a law for parents. 

We always return from our Teachers' Institutes 
with a better understanding of the new methods and 
what is expected of us if we would be classed as pro- 
gressive and up-to-date teachers. 

But it is this very up-to-dateness which we acquire, 
through our own ambitions for the advancement of 
the public school and in compliance with our state 
laws, that often brings such discord betv\7een the par- 
ent and the teacher, the pupil and the school. 



26 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

We must admit that methods, devices, discipline, in 
fact everything in and about the public school of to- 
day, is different from what it was twenty, ten, or even 
five years ago. 

To us, who are in the work, these changes have come 
so gradually that they do not seem at all radical. But 
if one of us had been out of school fifteen years and in 
that time had become a parent, and was starting her 
child in school for the first time would she not be sur- 
prised to learn of the new phonograph record he had 
heard; of the half -hour spent in making a bird or a 
doll house ; or that he did not know his A B C's in reg- 
ular order, or the multiplication table in succession? 
She might think, as many do : The new teacher is just 
wasting time on a lot of foolishness that doesn't mean 
anything, and she is being well paid for it, too. And 
why! Because she didn't realize or understand the 
changes. 

Children cannot take home accurate accounts of the 
happenings and doings at school, because they, them- 
selves, do not understand the cause, the motive, or the 
result hoped for, hence the parent does not under- 
stand what we are working for, and so the seed of 
much misunderstanding is sown. 

I have long hoped that sometime there might be a 
compulsory Parents' Institute conducted along ex- 
actly the same lines as the Teachers' Institute. This 
seems to me to be the only way that all parents can 
learn what the public schools are trying to do, and 
what is expected of both teachers and pupils. 

With these ideas in mind, I set about to do what 
little I could in a rural school in a western state. Sev- 
eral weeks before the proposed meeting I began 
planning. I selected a few of the poems suggested in 



THE PARENT AND THE COMMUNITY 27 

the course of study and taught them to the respective 
grades for language work. I had one of the advanced 
classes dramatize a history lesson, and my civics class 
prepare a debate on a popular question of the day. 

I planned a simple everyday reading lesson for my 
primary class, telling the story, developing words, 
phrases, and sentences. It was to be followed by seat 
work such as I always give them. 

To another class I gave a regular lesson and assign- 
ment in arithmetic. This constituted my program, 
which was really just everyday school work. 

The pupils wrote invitations while I added a per- 
sonal note, urging both the father and mother to meet 
with us on a certain day. 

When all had arrived I took the old course of study 
and with the aid of chalk and blackboard, showed how 
many classes we had by the old method, and how many 
minutes for each class, and asked the parents how 
much they thought it would be possible to accomplish 
under such conditions. 

Then I explained as well as I could, the new course 
and its purpose, emphasizing how we hoped it would 
benefit the child individually. I spoke of the new sub- 
jects and methods, by which we hoped to create greater 
interest and better scholarship. Following this, I 
gave my "lessons" or program, illustrating the meth- 
ods now in daily use in teaching. 

After we were through I asked for free discussions. 
I answered many questions that afternoon which 
proved to me that the parents were both interested 
and appreciative. 

In closing we had an old-fashioned "Spell Down," 
in which the parents took part, after which I passed 
cups of hot cocoa, wafers, and apples. 



28 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

I have been repaid for my experiment, many times, 
for I have found that in our community it has served 
to lessen the friction which existed between the home 
and the public school. 



HOW TO PRODUCE A COMMUNITY 
PAGEANT 

By Mattie C. Blomquist 

The value of a pageant based on the history of the 
community which produces it is : 

1. It stimulates an interest in local history and ac- 
quaints pupils with the leading facts of importance in 
the history of the community. 

2. It may lead to the preservation of knowledge of 
facts of value regarding local history. 

3. It engenders good will and strengthens the com- 
munity spirit. 

4. It interests the community in the school. 

5. It may be used as a means of raising money for 
the school. 

6. It affords wholesome recreation for the pupils, 
and clean entertainment for the community. 

7. It trains pupils in teamwork, and develops ex- 
ecutive ability and leadership. 

8. It affords a means of self-expression in prose, 
verse, artistic designing, dance, and song, 

9. It trains pupils in the use of good English, and it 
familiarizes them with dramatic and verse forms. 

10. It develops artistic, literary, and musical ability. 

The method of writing and producing a pageant is, 
briefly stated, as follows: 

1. Collect data. Organize classes, or appoint com- 
mittees of pupils to make a thorough study of local 



THE PARENT AND THE GOMMUNITY 29 

history. The source of such information may be: 
files of nev/spapers; county, city, village, and school 
records; old letters and photographs; data secured 
from the local and state historical societies. 

2. Draw up an outline of the pageant. This may be 
done by a language or literature class, by the school as 
a whole, or by a committee of pupils working under 
the leadership of the teacher or some other person in 
the community. This outline should sketch, briefly, 
the general plan of the pageant. 

3. Appoint committees to write the various parts of 
the pageant. These committees may be pupils or 
adults who are interested in the pageant. Certain 
parts may be written by language or literature classes ; 
for example the verse and the dialogue. The historical 
setting may be prepared by the history class which has 
first made a detailed study of the information collected 
by the committee on data. The costumes may be de- 
signed by a drawing class and made by a sewing class. 
The music may be selected and arranged by the com- 
mittee on music, by a music class, or by volunteers 
from the school ; or a musician in the community may 
compose, select, or arrange the music. 

4. After the pageant is written it may be considered 
advisable to publish it. A committee on pageant text 
should then be appointed. This committee may select 
the paper and the type to be used in the book, read the 
proof, design a cover for the book, and provide photo- 
graphs for the cuts. 

5. Committees or directors for the playing of the 
pageant should be selected. The teacher should be the 
director of the pageant as a whole. The committee on 
production should choose th-e pageant players; it 
should secure one or more prompters; and arrange 



30 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

the pageant rehearsals. The committee on finances 
should have charge of all advertising. Gate receipts 
should be turned over to this committee. It should be 
authorized to settle all accounts in connection with the 
pageant production. The members of this committee 
may well be selected from the school patrons. 

6. Other committees which may be appointed are: 
A committee on music to have charge of the music of 
the pageant, and the music before and after the pag- 
eant (unless provided by the school, as suggested 
above) . A committee on dancing to have charge of all 
folk and interpretative dances included in the pageant 
or introduced between parts. A committee on light- 
ing to provide special lighting effects. A committee 
on properties to secure all necessary stage equipment, 
costumes, grounds, and seating facilities. 

The following suggestions regarding community 
pageant writing and playing are offered: 

1. In writing the pageant avoid long monologues, or 
dialogues involving little action. 

2. If possible give the pageant in an outdoor the- 
atre. A hillside forms an excellent amphitheatre. It 
is advisable to have the stage flanked with bushes to 
facilitate exits and entrances. 

3. Secure orchestra music, band music, or choruses 
between parts. Avoid solos of all kinds. 

4. Eliminate long waits between parts. 

5. Costumes of crepe paper are attractive, easily 
made, and inexpensive. 

6. Pantomimes, drills, dances, verse, and music 
from other sources may be included in the pageant. It 
need not be wholly original. 

7. The pageant may be produced by several schools 
working together. It should then be so constructed 



THE PARENT AND THE COMMUNITY 31 

that each part is a unit, and thus eliminate frequent 
rehearsals of the entire pageant. 

8. Include as many people as possible in the writing 
and playing of the pageant. Make the chairman of 
each committee responsible for the work of his group. 
Publish the names of all committees, directors, and 
advisors in the pageant text. 



GO-TO-SCHOOL WEEK 

By Beulah R. Watrous 

The school where I teach is one of fifteen similar 
buildings in a city of nearly seventy thousand inhabi- 
tants. I doubt if there is a city of its size anywhere 
that can boast of more visitors to its public schools in 
the course of a year. 

We believe in constant and thorough advertising. 
Our superintendent uses every opportunity in public 
and private life to talk about our good schools and to 
urge people to visit them. When the children start 
their term's work each teacher tells them to invite 
their parents to come to see what they are doing. This 
invitation is supplemented by the child's report card 
which bears a plain message on the front, part of 
which reads, "It is especially important that you be- 
come personally acquainted with the teacher of your 
boy or girl and also learn of the general conditions in 
your school." The message is signed by the principal. 

In the school in which I teach we have a faculty 
meeting, lasting one hour, every Monday after school. 
On alternate Mondays each teacher is expected to 
spend the hour visiting the homes of her pupils until 
every home is visited. As we go about we invite the 
parents to visit their children in school. 



S2 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

I am often told by mothers that their little ones give 
them no peace until they have visited school. As 
people begin to come, the other children go home and 
beg their parents to call, also. 

For two years, in the Fall, we have had a "Go-to- 
School Week." One of our little foreign lads posed 
for a picture, which, together with a very appealing 
slogan, was thrown upon the screen in every movie 
house in our city during the week. The newspapers 
printed splendid editorials on the subject. After one 
appeared our school asked to purchase six hundred 
copies of the editorial to present to the people in the 
district. The press graciously contributed the papers 
and the children distributed them, especially to people 
who had no children of their own in school. We were 
particularly anxious to reach this class, as so many of 
them pay taxes and sometimes grumble at the ex- 
penses of our public institutions. 

Plenty of chairs were provided in each class room 
for the comfort of the visitors ; regular work was car- 
ried on all the week ; and people came and went at all 
hours of the school day. During the week in our school 
of six hundred pupils, over eleven hundred visits were 
reported by the various rooms. Mothers came with 
small babies, fathers even took an afternoon off to 
visit their boys and girls, and many people who had 
not been inside a schoolhouse for years lingered about 
the building long after the children had left for home. 

At the end of the week we were very tired but felt a 
great satisfaction in the good work which had been 
done. Teachers received inspiration, children were 
encouraged and overjoyed in their accomplishments, 
and parents became so vitally interested that visitor? 
are now a daily occurrence. 



SECURING EQUIPMENT FOR THE SCHOOL 



OUR LIBRARY OBTAINED THROUGH 
COMMUNITY INTEREST 

By Edna Sundberg 

How many people consider the school library the 
most important piece of school equipment? Few, few 
indeed! Yet learning to read understandingly and 
having a desire to do so are the two biggest things in 
all school life. The thinking person is the one who 
reads. No subject can be pursued with success with- 
out intelligent reading. 

A number of years ago, it fell to my lot to enter an 
ail-American neighborhood as a teacher. The school- 
house was a dingy, pictureless affair almost without 
equipment. What it had was ancient and mouse-eaten. 

The school library consisted of a shelf and a half of 
books in a small, dingy, old-fashioned cupboard. Many 
of the books were wholly unsuited to a school library, 
most of them being far over the heads of the possible 
readers. Some of the books, though soiled with age, 
still had leaves uncut. 

I selected the few suitable books, and read them to 
the children. Sometimes a whole half-hour of their 
valuable time was taken for this purpose. Many par- 
ents criticized this practice. 

In periods allotted to grammar and language, we 
wrote reviews of parts we liked or disliked. After the 



34 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

discussion of the stories, we wrote character sketches 
or reproduced from memory pleasing bits of de- 
scription. 

When the children began to show a lively interest, 
my own small library with its stories of famous men, 
its geographical readers, and other stories suitable for 
children, found its way to the schoolhouse. 

The children talked of the reading at home. One of 
the members of the board of directors suggested that 
geographical readers be used instead of the usual 
readers for advanced classes. We bought them. It 
was wonderful to have something alive to read. 

I then found another use for the story interest. The 
choicest stories were read in the ten minutes before 
the bell rang. We never had a cleaner tardy report. 

Now the time was ripe to talk about a library. We 
decided to have an entertainment to raise money. 
Judging by results, it was a wonderful success. Every- 
body came for miles around. 

Our state provides a State Library Fund, and dis- 
tricts interested enough to raise money may get help 
from this fund. My school directors showed their good 
will and appreciation by giving as much out of the 
school fund as we had raised by the entertainment. As 
a result we had a very neat sum with which to begin a 
real library. 

The directors were so pleased that they bought a 
very nice new bookcase, and then decided that the 
schoolhouse needed a general cleaning-up to make it 
good enough for the library. 

We called a meeting of the entire neighborhood to 
discuss the selection of the books. It is not difficult to 
find out just what kind of books will be acceptable, if 
a little thought is given to the matter. 



EQUIPMENT 35 

We opened the neighborhood meeting by asking 
each one present to write the names of a number of 
their favorite books on slips of paper ; also, names of 
books they would like to read. These slips were then 
collected. The meeting nominated a committee to se- 
lect the books, using the information gained. An alter- 
native list was made, to save time, in case the books 
ordered were not available. 

I acted as librarian during school days, and one of 
the busy mothers in the neighborhood took the work 
during vacation. 

I wish you might be made to feel the enthusiasm 
with which these people took hold of that library ! In- 
stead of one small bookcase they now have a set of 
fine sectional bookcases, filled with good books. 

Our state has a traveling library. In neighbor- 
hoods where public spirit seemed to be lacking, I have 
aroused interest in reading by getting one of these and 
taking care of it myself, with the help of another 
person. It will amaze one to find how many people will 
read if someone else will take all the responsibility and 
do the necessary work. 

In twelve years of handling libraries in rural com- 
munities, one fact impresses itself upon my mind. 
Books suitable for the average sixth, seventh, and 
eighth grade pupils are the ones in demand by the en- 
tire neighborhood. School children and adults read 
very much the same class of books. 

Travel and adventure appeal to boys and men; 
good, clean home-life stories and life in other parts of 
the world seem to be what women and girls crave. 
Historical stories appeal to all. 

The one thing most neglected is any form of reliable 
reference books on any subject. They are much need- 



36 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

ed since women and men in rural life have taken up 
club activities. 

Stories for young children should not be overlooked. 
There are many splendid books of this kind now. The 
mind of the small child is fertile soil, ready for the 
seed of knowledge. Habit is strong and where could 
a better one be formed? 

A NOVEL WAY TO SECURE A 
PHONOGRAPH 

By Alma Robinson 

Probably there is not a school in our entire country 
which would not be delighted to have a phonograph. 
It is no longer considered a luxury for schoolroom use, 
but is now looked upon as very necessary in properly 
carrying out our school curriculum, especially in the 
first eight grades. 

The uses of such an instrument are many and varied. 
It may be used for rhythmic expression, musical appre- 
ciation, instrument study, accompaniment for com- 
munity singing, drill in handwriting, and many other 
purposes which will be apparent when once the school 
succeeds in obtaining one. 

For securing a phonograph many teachers desire a 
plan that has been used successfully in a small rural 
school with an enrollment of from six to twenty pupils. 
The plan which I have used has proved wonderfully 
successful. Our school is a one-room rural school, no 
different in appearance from hundreds of others dot- 
ting our American landscape. It is located in a com- 
munity interested in the education and general welfare 
of its children, although it is not a wealthy com- 
munity. 



EQUIPMENT 37 

Our phonograph was purchased during the closing 
months of the war when all instruments as well as rec- 
ords were very high priced. At that time there were 
ten small boys and girls enrolled in our school, and 
there were only about twenty families in the district. 

We held a meeting to discuss the many possibilities, 
both entertaining and instructive, of a school phono- 
graph. The next day we began to form plans. Every 
school, far and near, had been having pie suppers and 
box socials. These seemed at first to be the only 
sources of revenue open to us. Desiring to do some- 
thing of a different nature we conceived the idea of 
having a "hen social." 

I made a trip to our nearest town, six miles away, to 
see if our music dealer would lend a phonograph and 
records to us for a few days on condition that we would 
purchase it if we were fortunate enough to raise the 
required amount of money. He gladly made the loan 
and promised to deliver it, free, on any day we wished. 

Then the pupils made invitations to send to the fami- 
lies in our district, inviting them to come to our school- 
house on the following Friday to enjoy the music, ora- 
tions, readings, and various other numbers to be fur- 
nished by the phonograph. These were to be inter- 
spersed with readings and songs by the pupils. The 
program was to be followed by refreshments and a 
social half-hour. At the end of our invitation we 
stated that we would very much appreciate a donation 
of one or two hens from each family to apply on our 
music fund, but urged each family to come even if un- 
able to make a donation. 

When Friday came nearly every family was repre- 
sented, each bringing two well-fed hens. Some who 
could not come sent hens or made us a cash donation. 



38 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

We sold our chickens to a near-by huckster; and 
when all our cash was counted we found ourselves to be 
the happy possessors of fifty-one dollars. 

We purchased a thirty-five dollar phonograph and a 
dozen choice records with the money, for we were de- 
termined not to go into debt. Great care was taken in 
the selection of our records. We obtained some of the 
best masterpieces as well as records played by various 
instruments. That was over three years ago, and we 
have managed to add a few choice records each year to 
our list. 

In closing, I might add that we have no trouble with 
discipline or attendance in this school, and that the 
children never tire of our phonograph. 

PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT EARNED 
AND MADE BY THE PUPILS 

By Noah J. Parsons 

Upon becoming the principal of a two-teacher 
school a few years ago, I found the grounds devoid of 
any play equipment. The building had been built the 
year before and was a fairly good one. The new build- 
ing site had been purchased out of a field ; hence, was 
devoid of shade trees. The grounds were ample but, 
being level and lacking proper drainage, became very 
muddy in wet weather. As the county board of educa- 
tion was heavily in debt, I knew it was useless to ask 
assistance from this source. 

With the primary teacher and the pupils, I immedi- 
ately began planning to remedy the situation. An ice 
cream and pie supper was decided upon as the quickest 
way to raise some funds with which to relieve our dis- 
tressing condition. The girls baked the pies and the 



EQUIPMENT 39 

cakes ; the mothers furnished us with the milk to make 
the ice cream and lent us the freezers ; and the boys vol- 
unteered to turn them. Thus our expenses were cut to 
the minimum. We had a good crowd out that night 
and all had a very enjoyable time. We cleared forty- 
six dollars. 

As the school was located in a section of the county 
where there was plenty of timber, and the farmers 
were kind enough to give us such as we needed, we 
thought it best to make most of the play equipment 
needed for the school, believing the pupils would ap- 
preciate it much more if they had a hand in the mak- 
ing. So we obtained from the forests near by the posts 
and poles we needed. One farmer kindly gave us an 
old wagon wheel and thimble. With this and a large 
black-locust post about fifteen feet long we made a 
giant's stride, using ropes to attach to the wheel. This 
proved so popular with the pupils that another farmer 
gave us an old wheel and thimble, and we made another 
giant's stride. 

For the little children we set a row of posts in the 
ground, seven feet apart and eight feet high. Across 
the tops of the posts strong poles were fastened se- 
curely, thus serving as a place to attach swings. We 
also built a slide of smoothly planed lumber. With 
posts, poles, and planks we made seesaws. We planned 
to build a merry-go-round, but many of the mothers 
were fearful lest some of our young charges be injured 
on it, hence we thought it best to get along without 
this ever-delightful amusement for children. 

For the boys we arranged horizontal bars by set- 
ting rows of posts in the ground and boring holes 
through the tops of the posts. We used gas pipe for 
the bars. These were arranged at different heights 



40 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

to accommodate boys of different sizes. A section 
foreman gave us a load of cinders, which one of the 
boys volunteered to haul w^hile the others dug a pit. 
Then with two high posts we constructed a vaulting 
pole for the high jump. 

With the remainder of the money, after buying 
ropes, chains, gas pipe, and lumber with which to make 
the above equipment, we purchased a volley ball outfit, 
and a baseball outfit, consisting of two balls, two bats, 
and one catcher's mitt. As we had about one hundred 
and twenty pupils in school, it was possible to form sev- 
eral teams from those who were large enough to play 
in competitive games. Many strongly contested games 
were waged between opposing forces. These pupils 
soon learned to play and to greatly enjoy their play 
periods. Throughout the term the attendance was 
much better, and the morale of the school improved at 
least fifty per cent. 

When Arbor Day came we improved our school 
grounds by setting out shade trees, building gravel 
walks, and so on. The girls and the mothers furnished 
dinner on the grounds. The larger boys and the fathers 
brought teams, hauled gravel, and set out the shade 
trees. The afternoon was turned into a patriotic cele- 
bration. The school had raised funds and purchased a 
large flag six by ten feet. After the flag pole seventy- 
eight feet long had been set into the hole dug for it, the 
county attorney delivered an eloquent address. Then 
Old Glory was raised to the top of the pole and left to 
float in the air. In the meantime, the school had 
formed a circle around the pole. With eyes uplifted 
to Old Glory, waving gently m the breezes, the pupils 
recited the flag salute. The program closed with the 
singing of The Star Spangled Banner. 



EQUIPMENT 41 

The patrons present complimented highly the good, 
constructive work the school was doing and assured us 
that they were ready and willing at all times to help us 
do anything necessary for the improvement of the 
school. 

HO^V WE PROCURED A PROJECTION 
LANTERN 

By Edith Nesbitt 

Ours is just an ordinary rural school without elec- 
tricity, yet we have a projection lantern and screen 
for use in visual instruction. 

Last summer at the county fair we won the first 
premium, of ten dollars, on our school exhibit. Then 
came the question, "What shall we do with our 
money?" We had a library and were also to have the 
use of a traveling library, so we did not want to buy 
books; and since this district was a "good provider," 
we were not in need of other things that might be pur- 
chased with ten dollars. Therefore, it was rather 
hard to decide what to buy. 

One day one of the mothers in the district suggested 
using the money to start a fund for a projection lantern 
with the idea that the community should donate the 
rest. It was pointed out that we could use the lantern 
at many of the community gatherings as well as in 
school. 

This idea suited me exactly, but I was rather doubt- 
ful about interesting the community in helping to buy 
a lantern. However, I began collecting all possible in- 
formation on lantern outfits from the State Education 
Department and the manufacturers of projection 
apparatus. 



42 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

One item of information received was that we could 
use toward the purchase of a lantern the entire sum 
allowed a rural school by the State Education Depart- 
ment for books and apparatus. 

I talked the matter over with the district superin- 
tendent who was greatly in favor of it. I said nothing 
about it to the children, for I knew that they would be 
deeply disappointed if such a plan were proposed and 
then not carried out. 

Shortly afterward I heard of a firm for whom we 
could sell Christmas cards and receive one half of the 
proceeds provided we paid all of the transportation 
charges on the goods. Thinking it would be a good 
chance for the school to earn most of the money for a 
lantern, I decided to try this plan and sent for two 
sample books of cards, which cost us one dollar each. 

When the books came I told the children of my 
plan. As might be expected, they were delighted and 
more than willing to work. 

The books contained seventy-eight samples of cards, 
seals, calendars, stickers, and folders. All of them 
were very pretty and reasonably priced. The children 
showed the books to their friends and took orders. 
When the orders amounted to about twenty-five dol- 
lars, we sent them in. The total amount of the sales 
yvas ninety-six dollars. 

After deducting the transportation charges and cost 
of two sample books from our half of the sales, we still 
had a very good balance. This amount added to our pre- 
mium money and the money received from the State 
gave us about seventy-five dollars. 

We purchased a lantern, a six by seven foot screen, 
and a dry cell battery, at a total cost of sixty-two dol- 
lars and twenty-five cents. 



EQUIPMENT 43 

The State Education Department loans us the slides 
which we can keep one week or, on certain conditions, 
four weeks; and we pay transportation charges on 
return shipments. 

We use the slides daytimes during the week, and on 
Friday evening invite all who wish to see them, to 
come and enjoy them too. 

It was not all play to earn this money, but the chil- 
dren enjoy the lantern much more because of having 
earned the greater part of the price. 

OUR NEW PIANO THE RESULT OF A 
COURT TRIAL 

By Virginia Watkins 

The necessity and worth of a piano in the rural 
school is generally appreciated by most teachers of the 
present generation. Regrettable is the fact that very 
few of our rural schools are equipped with a standard 
piano, but of late it has become the aim of many a 
teacher to secure one for her room. The following is an 
account of how I secured a piano for the school in 
which I last taught. 

It was just a common rural school, with bare walls, 
a few windows, a dirty-looking stove, and absolutely 
nothing to soften or break the monotony of the ordi- 
nary, unattractive room. I had not been there long 
until I decided that it was necessary to have a piano. 
With this end in view, I racked my brains to find 
some way of earning the money necessary for this 
purpose. 

I consulted the directors of my school board about 
this project, and asked for suggestions. They kindly 
offered to be responsible for one half of the expense if 



44 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

I could raise the remainder, although how I should 
raise such a sum, none of them could say ; so I went to 
work. 

There were about seventy parents, and some eighty- 
five other persons of the district who would be inter- 
ested. These people were all quite prosperous farmers. 
I sent out attractive little notices to each family in- 
viting its members to attend a court trial for the pur- 
pose of raising funds for a school piano. 

Then I began preparations by enlisting the help of 
my pupils. I chose two of my best boy debaters to be 
the principal characters. They dressed as business 
men. Five more were chosen to act as witnesses. Sev- 
eral enthusiastic young ladies of the district volun- 
teered to be of assistance if I could use them. I had 
them dress as policewomen, and with their help 
trumped up farcical charges against all prominent 
persons invited. I instructed twelve of my pupils to 
play the part of jurors, and others to act as court at- 
tendants. One of the young men of the district, who 
had been studying law, promised to be prosecuting 
attorney. I decided to take the part of judge, myself; 
so things were nicely arranged, and an earnest course 
of practice and instruction followed. 

The appointed day came at last, and the visitors 
were ushered into the schoolroom, which had been 
transformed into a court room. My desk, draped with 
an American flag, became the judge's desk; a table 
piled high with books, was placed before the judge's 
desk to accommodate the attorney. The side bench 
was fitted for the twelve little jurors. Seats were re- 
served for the visitors. 

The two boys, chosen as principal characters, start- 
ed a discussion over the right the school had to a pi- 



EQUIPMENT 45 

ano, using every argument that could possibly be con- 
sidered on either side of the question, and finally rais- 
ing such a hubbub that some of my policewomen ar- 
rested the two on a charge of disturbing the peace. 
They were immediately presented in court and several 
other children, before chosen, were summoned as wit- 
nesses. By this time the room was crowded, and pre- 
sented an interested audience. 

The trial began; the jury was impaneled, and took 
their seats; the witnesses were sworn in; and all the 
formal rites of the court were solemnly enacted. The 
prisoners were examined and cross-examined by the 
prosecuting attorney. They were made to repeat all 
their arguments, which of course they did with gusto, 
and becoming excited again stated every possible view 
of the case. Finally the jury filed out to return im- 
mediately with a verdict of guilty for both boys. They 
were given two days of selling subscriptions for the 
school piano. In addition the judge declared that all 
fines collected would be devoted to the piano fund. 

Directly after the case was dismissed, there was 
great excitement at the door. The president of the 
board was brought in, guarded by one of the police- 
women, who brought a charge against him of brutality 
to his automobile. After much argument on the part of 
many witnesses, and much laughter from the audience, 
the prisoner was found guilty and fined one dollar and 
fifty cents. When his case was dismissed, the audience 
was astonished to hear an order issued for a fine of five 
cents from each person who had laughed during the 
preceding trial. This sum was collected by my at- 
tendants and amounted to two dollars and five cents. 

Then the treasurer of the board was ushered in on a 
charge of having broken all speed ordinances while 



46 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

driving to the schoolhouse that day. When all had 
been said and done, and much merriment offered, the 
jurors pronounced him guilty. He paid a fine of one 
dollar and costs which amounted to fifty-five cents, 
while the amount collected this time from the audience 
was one dollar and seventy cents. 

In this way, one person after another, was arraigned 
before the court, charged with some comical misde- 
meanor, found guilty, and fined anything from five 
cents to one dollar and sixty cents, according to the 
amount of amusement provided. Our trials lasted 
about two hours, during which time quite an amount 
of money was collected. Finally I dismissed the court 
and invited the visitors to partake of a picnic lunch, 
which some of the women had provided, after which 
we played games which everyone enjoyed. 

Many congratulations were offered upon the success 
of the venture. Most of the necessary money had been 
provided, and in a short time our school was the proud 
possessor of a beautiful piano. 

A BEAUTIFUL PAINTING SECURED 
THROUGH AN APPRECIATION OF ART 

By B. F. Larsen 

A teacher often finds upon going into a new school, 
that there is not a creditable picture in the building. 
The sensitive teacher is uncomfortable in the pres- 
ence of such conditions and soon begins to plan ways 
and means of beautifying the schoolroom. Good pic- 
tures are valuable aids in creating an atmosphere of 
friendship between teacher and pupils. 

How can the teacher secure pictures ? Put the boys 
and girls to work on the problem. If you have never 



EQUIPMENT 47 

helped a group of boys and girls to see and feel some 
genuine need, and then acted as their adviser while 
they were working to satisfy that need, you probably 
have never tasted the highest joys that may reward 
the teacher. 

The following method of securing pictures has come 
within the writer's experience. It is given with the 
hope that teachers who have not been provided with 
artistic schoolrooms will turn their seeming misfor- 
tunes into blessings by creating for themselves an at- 
mosphere of beauty in which to do their work. 

"I never have seen a better class of boys and girls," 
said one of my teachers at the close of the first day of 
school. "But look at the gloomy schoolroom. I fear 
for success when this room is less attractive to me than 
the little, commonplace boarding house where I eat 
and sleep." 

Within a few days she said, "Boys and girls, when 
you go home to-day, ask your parents to take down all 
of the pictures from the walls, remove all curtains and 
cushions, take up the rugs and arrange the furniture 
in formal rows around the room. After living in the 
house in this condition for one week come back and 
tell me how you feel." "We know already," they began 
to answer. "One day of that, each year, is all Father 
can stand. It makes him cross, and Mother gets tired 
and soon we are all out of sorts." 

"Very well," said the teacher, "if you know already 
there is no need for our experiment. But if uninviting 
homes make us unhappy it is just possible that an 
ugly schoolroom will affect our good nature a little 
also." The children understood and began to plan. 

The following morning the smallest girl placed a 
package on the teacher's desk, and said in a low tone of 



48 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

voice, "Here's a picture Mother says we may use for 
fixing up the room. We took it down from the dining 
room. We can get along without it for a while if you 
would like it." 

A little later an awkward boy leaned over the teach- 
er's desk and placed before her a reproduction of a 
well-known picture, which he had clipped from a 
magazine. 

These pictures were shown to the school. The next 
mommg nearly every student brought one or more 
pictures. Some brought seven or eight. "What shall 
I do with these ?" the teacher asked herself, as she sur- 
veyed the questionable quality of this volunteer deco- 
rative material. She resolved to preserve and use the 
good, and dispose of the bad as diplomatically as pos- 
sible. 

"We have more than enough pictures," said the 
teacher. "Our problem is to make a selection. Doubt- 
less we can use nearly all of them if we treat them in 
different ways." 

"Here is a glorious autumn landscape that may con- 
nect us with the out of doors now. Washington Cross- 
ing the Delaware and this portrait of Lincoln may be 
reserved for February. This Egyptian scene may help 
us in our geography work." The teacher picked out 
pictures of birds, flowers, animals, factories, ships, 
people, and scenes illustrating various countries and 
conditions. They were selected from many sources; 
even used post cards and embossed grocery calendars 
were in evidence. 

Most of these pictures were not works of art, but 
this wise teacher determined to use them as a basis for 
good art teaching. After all of the pictures had been 
displayed, and classified by the students according to 



EQUIPMENT 49 

use, it was discovered that some of the most charming 
contributions had been placed in a pile which seemed 
to have no particular use. The teacher held them up, 
one after another, and asked, "For what can we use 
this one?" There was no answer. "Shall we destroy 
it?" the teacher questioned. "No," came the unani- 
mous response. Finally one boy said, "Let us use it 
for enjoyment." And soon the enjoyment pile became 
the popular pile. 

"Now," said the teacher, "we have come to the most 
difficult question of all. Picture makers are all human 
just like us. Sometimes they do not make good pic- 
tures because they do not know how to make good ones. 
There are good and poor pictures just as there are 
good and poor stories. We cannot always readily tell 
the good from the poor. We all want to learn how as 
fast as we can. We may need expert advice some- 
times. 

"While we are looking at these pictures we shall talk 
about them. We shall point out the good things we 
like about them. If we like some of the pictures better 
than others we shall not flatter the boys and girls who 
brought the better ones, nor frown upon the children 
who brought the others." The teacher's purpose was 
to avoid discouraging the pupils who selected 
poor pictures and, also to avoid casting any reflection 
upon their homes. She knew that the essential thing at 
this stage was to arouse an interest in the pictures and 
a love for them, and then, through subtle suggestion 
rather than technical criticism, to develop the student's 
powers of discrimination. 

"We have good desks, good books, arrd, as a whole, a 
rather pleasant room," said the teacher, "but so far as 
I know this school has never owned a really fine pic- 



50 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

ture. I have an idea about which I am going to tell 
you, and then we can discuss it together. Every 
Christmas we do our best to make other people happy. 
We carefully select a present for mother and father 
and baby sister, and we are very glad when we see 
that they are pleased. Christmas is a long way off, 
but by starting now we might save up enough money 
to purchase a good picture for the school. We could 
place it in this room and year after year for a long, 
long time the boys and girls who come here would be 
made happier if we make a wise choice. 

"This little project could be our community secret. 
Then just before Christmas we might have a fine pro- 
gram, invite our parents, unveil our new picture, and 
surprise everybody with our public service." 

And so a treasurer was appointed and the money be- 
gan to come in — in pennies and nickels mostly. The 
children were asked to contribute only small amounts 
at a time and to make contributions only when there 
was no sacrifice of necessities. 

"How shall we choose our picture?" the teacher 
asked one day. Children need training in the selection 
of pictures and the teacher was determined to use this 
opportunity for their education. 

Fortunately a few public-spirited citizens had se- 
cured a small exhibit from a good non-resident artist. 
The boys and girls went to see it and were delighted 
with the freshness and color of the paintings. 

"This is my choice," said one boy. "Let us buy one 
of these," the children urged, and in a short time they 
had decided, by vote, which picture would best fit into 
the conditions of their room. But when they dis- 
covered the price, one hundred and fifty dollars, and 
compared it with the twelve dollars which they had 



EQUIPMENT 51 

saved, there was a noticeable disappointment, which 
was even greater when they discovered that not one of 
the pictures in this exhibit could be purchased for 
twelve dollars. 

Fortunately a number of local artists lived in this 
small city. The children visited their studios and ac- 
quired an interest in pictures which could not be ob- 
tained in other ways. 

They told the local artists the purpose of their visit 
and the amount of their savings. The artists offered 
to take the school savings in part payment for a good 
picture and donate the rest of the cost price. A num- 
ber of pictures were offered on these terms and again 
the students had a chance to choose. Their choice 
showed good judgment. They had received something 
vastly more important than any picture. 

A certain type of education can be presented only 
through pictures. This type of education is essential 
in every school program. There is always some way 
of securing good pictures if school officers and teach- 
ers want them. 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 



MISSING THE FUN REFORMED MY 
MISCHIEVOUS PUPILS 

By Frances C Duggar 

I was quite young when I started teaching the sec- 
ond grade, and at first I had trouble with the disci- 
pline. I tried the old, old methods — scolding, lectur- 
ing, keeping the children in. None of them was ef- 
fective. Then I tried a new method of my own — and 
it worked! How happy I was, and how the children 
improved in manners and conduct! 

Here is my method. It is as simple as A, B, C. I do 
not keep in the bad children. They are already irri- 
tated by their own badness. I dismiss them when the 
bell rings, and I keep in the good children ! 

Do the children like it? That is it. I make the 
time so interesting that they want to be kept in. 

The first day that I started the new plan, I said to 
the children just before time for dismissal, "Harry 
and Neal and Evelyn and Ethyl may be excused from 
the room. They have not tried to-day to make our 
schoolroom a happy place. The rest of you may stay, 
if you like, for a brand-new game." 

The children's curiosity was aroused. Harry and 
Neal and Evelyn and Ethyl were loath to go, but I 
gently and firmly urged them toward the door and 
watched them down the steps. Then I explained the 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 53 

new game. It was really an old game, but none of the 
children had ever played it. It was nothing more nor 
less than the forfeit game of Air, Sea, and Land, 
played with a rubber ball. After ten minutes the game 
was declared over and the real fun began. The for- 
feits were drawn and the penalties given out. The 
children laughed very heartily when Susan tried to 
say the alphabet backwards, and they were wild with 
joy when Bob threw up a grape and caught it in his 
mouth. Then the children were dismissed, smiling 
and happy. They had been kept only twenty minutes 
overtime. 

The next morning the children's first inquiry was 
whether they might stay in again. "Yes, indeed," I 
told them, "if you're good." That afternoon we 
learned to play Red Rover out of doors. Every child 
was there. No one had needed to be dismissed. 

For the rest of the year I did not once miss keeping 
in the good children and I always gave them the best 
time that I possibly could. I varied the entertainment 
as much as possible, and I seldom detained the chil- 
dren over twenty minutes. 

For these stay-in periods I never used story-telling 
as entertainment, nor pictures. This was because I 
wanted every child to hear all of my best stories and 
see all of my best pictures. I knew that the unruly 
children needed such things even more than the well- 
behaved children, so I told stories and showed pictures 
only when all were present. 

I did read to the children after school, however, us- 
ing books that we would never have had time for dur- 
ing school hours. I was always careful not to read 
more than two days a week, because I wanted the sur- 
prise element to enter into the child's joy in staying. 



54 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Some days after I had finished reading a story I 
divided the children into groups. Each group went to 
a separate comer of the room and rehearsed the story 
as a play. Then each performed for the other groups. 

At other times I let the groups choose their own 
story to dramatize or make up an original play. How 
the children shrieked with laughter when Goldilocks 
(for whom they had wisely chosen a boy) ran to the 
window and actually climbed out, the three bears in 
hot pursuit! But school had been dismissed, so the 
laughter made no difference. That was one of the 
advantages of the stay-in fun. We could be as merry 
as we pleased. 

More than once we made jointed cardboard animals. 
Little brads were used to connect the parts and the 
animals moved their heads and legs freely to the great 
delight of the children. 

I will never forget how much the children enjoyed 
making peanut animals one afternoon. Five children 
had to be dismissed that day. It was amusing to see 
the longing glances they cast at the sack on my desk, 
although they had no idea that it contained peanuts. 
They only knew that it was a surprise for the "good 
children." 

Toothpicks and peanuts were distributed, and the 
children made a dog, a mouse, a man, a spider, a frog, 
and a grasshopper, as I placed the models on my desk. 
Then each made an original peanut animal, and we 
had a judge to select the best and award a dozen pea- 
nuts for the prize. 

Another glorious time was the day we made pea 
houses. That was the day Neal was so anxious to stay 
that he said he would never, never be naughty again 
and have to miss all the fun. Green field peas and 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 55 

toothpicks were passed around the room. I had made 
the models beforehand from which the pupils chose 
their designs. Some put up single-room cabins. Others 
made two rooms and a roof. Still others put up elabo- 
rate structures of two stories, four rooms upstairs, 
four downstairs, and a roof. The peas form the cor- 
ners. The toothpicks are stuck into them. If a pea 
bursts it is taken out and replaced by another. 

When the weather was pleasant, we sometimes 
played out-of-door games, not the regular school 
games that we played during our physical training 
period, but alert, lively games with plenty of action. 

One day we had a fish-pond. With the aid of pat- 
terns the children made small fishes, ducks, frogs, and 
turtles from drawing paper. I gave the children two- 
inch lengths of fine iron wire and showed them how to 
put it through the animal and twist it into a loop on 
the upper side, and bend the ends flat on the lower 
side. As soon as the animals were finished they were 
brought to me for waxing. Holding the loop with my 
scissors, I dipped the animal into melted tallow. After 
it was dry, the animal was thinly coated with wax so it 
would be impervious to water. The children made fish- 
ing poles with hooks and we floated the animals in a 
tub of water. 

I wish I had space to tell of some of our other good 
times, especially of our big paper-doll festival, but 
each teacher will be able to make up games and enter- 
tainments to fit her own peculiar requirements. 

Just a few words about the effect of the stay-in peri- 
od. Of course the children who stayed talked about it 
to the ones who didn't stay, and that made the little 
offenders firmly resolve to do better. How they hated 
to miss a single day ! 



56 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

The only faults for which I ever had to punish were 
quarreling, continually interrupting, idling, and being 
noisy. These were frequent at the beginning of the 
year. But after the stay-in plan was started they oc- 
curred so seldom that our room seemed an entirely 
different place. 

THE SCHOOL BULLY TRANSFOBiMED 
THROUGH THE POWER OF LOVE 

By Mabel R. Blitch 

His hair was red, of the shade that presages tem- 
per; he delighted in malicious mischief; he was, in 
brief, the kind of boy that makes a teacher wish she 
had never entered the profession. 

I disliked him as fervently as he disliked me. When- 
ever his eyes met mine they contained a defiant hard- 
ness. The other children in this little rural school, 
while not at all exemplary, were at least manageable, 
but I never knew as I went to school each morning 
what particular form of trouble this boy might cause 
during the day. 

The little fellows were afraid of him. He teased 
and tormented them at recess time and after school. 
He incited the larger boys to fight. He pulled up the 
seedlings the girls had planted. His parents rejoiced 
with him whenever he succeeded in annoying me, and 
my only method of retaliation was to pass over him 
with quiet scorn during recitation, intimating that his 
behavior exempted him from being "one of us." Nat- 
urally this produced more bitterness. I was almost 
ready to confess myself beaten at the end of that first 
year, and during the vacation that followed spent con- 
siderable thought on the matter. 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 57 

Discussing it with a kindly old gentleman who knew 
boys, I averred, "School teaching would be a joy if it 
were not for Don." 

He bent a penetrating glance upon me. 

"You don't love that boy, do you?" he remarked 
quizzically. 

"Nobody could," was my prompt reply. "The little 
scamp does everything in his power to annoy me. 
Love him! I abominate him." 

"Love him," he advised simply. "Try it. Boys want 
love although they pretend not to. Love is a wonder- 
worker. It was not in vain that our Master told us to 
'love our enemies.' There is something lovable in 
everyone, didn't you know that? Praise him a little. 
Love him. Try it." 

I was skeptical, nevertheless I began the new term 
with the intention of loving them all. I smiled as 
kindly upon the school bully as upon the daintiest, 
dearest baby in the first grade. 

I found that Don was remarkably quick at figures, 
and I commended him publicly. I asked him to help 
some of the little fellows with their tables. I made 
him monitor of the flag; called upon him to help when 
I required the services of a "strong manly boy" ; and 
gave him one of the coveted back seats, reserved for 
only those whom teacher could trust. I kept him after 
school upon little pretenses of helping me, and asked 
him to come before the others in the morning, to help 
sharpen pencils, and the like: all this really to keep 
him from annoying the little fellows. I told stories 
during recreation hour that were most calculated to 
inspire him to emulation. I established a footing of 
comradeship by questioning him about the woodsy 
things we both loved. 



58 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

The bully in him died gradually. At first he was 
suspicious of my overtures, and although I had taken 
from him his opportunities for mischief on the way to 
and from school he found chances to annoy the smaller 
children at recess. But I was determined that Love 
should work its wonders, and I proved its powers by 
putting small boys in Don's charge. 

*'Don't let the big boys hurt this little fellow," I 
would say. "You watch out for him, Don. I know you 
will take care of him." 

This seemed to arouse in him a latent protective 
instinct, and now the change in him became marked. 
But the change was not in him alone. I, too, felt it. I 
began to love Don. To know that I had the power to 
soften that defiant look, to know that he trusted me, to 
know that he was improving in his lessons, made me 
very grateful. Insensibly, it affected the school at- 
mosphere. Better order and better manners in school 
and on the playground resulted. 

I thought my triumph complete when, one afternoon, 
Don came into the room where we were having a Bird 
Club meeting and said shortly, "I want to join this 
heah Bird Club." This was done while some half dozen 
jeering scornful "pals," perched on the fence outside, 
were voicing their disgust at "savin' birds which is 
meant to kill." Don had been a ringleader in the 
slaughter of birds, a ruthless killer. In my glowing 
pleasure, I could hardly refrain from high praise. 

The people in the village began to remark about the 
transformation: they spoke about how Don had 
changed from an insolent, malicious, idle fellow into a 
courteous, helpful, industrious boy. I thought my cup 
was full. But there was one more drop of joy to com- 
plete Lovers triumph. 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 59 

I had started a night school for the adults of the vil- 
lage, and one evening, as Don saw me entering the 
cold schoolhouse, he hastened after me to ask if I 
would like him to build a fire. I thanked him, and 
watched him as he energetically piled on the coal. 

Having made the fire, the boy perched on top of one 
of the desks, and said, meditatively, "Do you know, 
I'm not like I — I used to be." 

"I know," I said gently. 

"I don't know how come," his soft Southern drawl 
continued, "but I don't feel like I used to. I used to be 
— full of meanness — didn't like to study, didn't care 
nohow; and now — Jack came over to my house this 
afternoon," he went on earnestly, "and me and him, 
we got to talkin' — 'bout you. An' we decided we are 
going to stick to you. You are the best teacher ! An' 
— an' I reckon you c'n ask me to do anything." 

Then in a soft, low voice, vibrant with feeling, he 
added : "You seem, sorter, well — you seem just like a 
— a mother to me!" 

Laughter and tears struggled in my voice, as, im- 
pulsively holding out my hand, I said, "I'm so glad 
you feel that way, Don. We are good friends, and I 
hope we always shall be." 

SOLVING THE DISCIPLINE PROBLEM 
ON THE PLAYGROUND 

By Jennie Leuty 

Over in the northwestern part of my little county 
there was a rural school of about fifty pupils, classed 
as very unruly. Reports I heard about the school were 
like this, "The teacher there last year was a man, and 
he was only able to stay a few weeks." "For a long 



60 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

time no teacher has stayed longer than two months." 
"I wouldn't teach that school for a thousand dollars a 
month." Nevertheless, I accepted the position, and 
was determined to make a success of the school and 
stay eight months instead of two. 

The first morning I gave quite a long, friendly talk, 
bringing out the idea that school was a place for both 
work and play, and that I wanted us to have a great 
deal of both in the proper hours ; that we must all work 
together and make our school the best school in the 
county, so that people Vv^ould say, "They have a fine 
school at Valley. I guess the pupils over there are 
hard to beat. They are live wires." 

Then I let the pupils express their opinions in regard 
to the matter, and they agreed that if each one tried to 
do what I wanted and what they thought was right, we 
would surely have the best school in the county. At 
recess one boy came to me and said, "Miss L — , we 
never had a teacher begin like that before. They al- 
ways began by telling us about ninety-nine things we 
couldn't do." 

I had heard that lots of trouble took place on the 
school grounds at playtime and was carried from 
there into the schoolroom. Naturally, I decided that 
the chief place for me to right affairs would be on the 
playground. So before dismissal for the first recess I 
asked to see the right hand of those who were ready to 
have a real lively game of Blackman. All the right 
hands went up and I knew then that I had a good 
start. 

We played hard all recess. Having made the rules 
before the game began there was no chance for an 
argument in that respect. The recess ended too quickly 
and it was easy to read from the children's faces that 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 61 

all had enjoyed every minute. During the entire 
school year I played with the pupils as much as I 
could. If any misunderstandings arose I adjusted 
them soon with a kind explanation of rules. Yes, I 
played in winter even when sled-racing was in its ele- 
ment and I had to help be horse. We all played to- 
gether, thus preventing the forming of cliques. 

Next, I aroused the patriotism and pride of the pu- 
pils. They did not know the flag salute, nor could they 
sing "America," or many other patriotic songs that 
every boy and girl should know. Having taught the 
flag salute, and "America," I taught many other good 
songs, patriotic and otherwise. I continually gave 
short patriotic talks. I was working for harmony and 
I believed then as now, in order to have harmony in 
the schoolroom, there must be plenty of good songs 
taught and sung. 

As soon as I possibly could I began to visit the 
homes of my pupils. This was quite a difficult task as 
I had only a short time each evening, and some of my 
pupils lived quite long distances from my boarding 
house. However, by taking advantage of every Satur- 
day and Sunday that I remained in the community I 
finally made one visit to each home and more than one 
to some. After the visits I knew better what to expect 
of each child and how to deal with him. I also had 
gained the good will and cooperation of the parents, 
both of which are essential to a successful school. 

A teacher herself is the best judge as to whether or 
not she has the good will and admiration of all her pu- 
pils. Here as in many other places, actions speak 
louder than words. I was quite sure of all but one boy. 
Johnny, as I shall call him, was inclined to cheat, and 
do many naughty tricks when my back was turned. 



62 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

In my attempts to straighten him out, I began by let- 
ting him do things that needed a trusty person. These 
things were generally a great honor to anyone, espe- 
cially Johnny, whom no one trusted. My praise for 
him was endless, and I soon noticed a change in him. 
He knew he was being trusted and he was often heard 
saying, "This teacher likes me." 

One day Johnny shot a paper wad and I did not know 
it until recess, when he came and told me in this way : 
"Miss L — , I shot a paper wad. Don't know what 
made me do it. Guess I just forgot." Did I scold 
him? No, indeed, because he was honest in telling 
me about the incident. 

Put your whole self into your work, and determine 
to make your school a success ! 

FIND THE CHILD'S INTEREST AND TURN 
IT INTO THE PROPER CHANNEL 

By Mayme L. Tellefsen 

Victor, a lad of sixteen years, was in the fifth grade. 
He was a terror in school and on the grounds. In the 
schoolroom he was continually whispering, laughing, 
tormenting the other pupils, and in short making a 
nuisance of himself in every way possible. On the 
grounds he was the roughest of the boys, always hurt- 
ing the smaller children and breaking up their games. 
At every recess and every intermission, there was 
someone running into the building in tears. 

The older teachers pitied me because I was young 
and just out of normal school. They told me that 
Victor had even whipped his mother, had been a 
candidate for the Reform School, and was being held 
on probation. He had been expelled from school sev- 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 63 

eral times, and the superintendent told me that he 
would expel Victor again if he gave any further 
trouble. I did not want him expelled. This was my 
first school, and I wanted to make good. 

After the first day of school I realized that I must 
use my brains, if I ever did. I tactfully asked Victor's 
former teacher what he liked to do, and was informed 
that "He just wanted to draw maps all day long, and 
do nothing else," her voice registering all her scorn. 

The next morning I called Victor and said, "We need 
a large map of the United States. Will you make one 
for me, Victor?" He agreed and seemed very pleased. 
I bought one and a half yards of heavy white muslin 
and had the janitor make an easel, three by five feet, 
on which to tack it. I put this in one of the front 
corners of the schoolroom where I could see it. 

Then I said to Victor ; "I shall put your map in this 
comer so no one will bother you. As soon as you are 
through with each lesson you may come up here 
quietly and draw." 

The plan acted like a charm. He actually studied 
his lessons so that he could work on the map. After 
he had made the outline and put in the rivers, all of 
which he had done beautifully and skillfully, I asked 
one of the teachers to notice the map the next time she 
came in and give it the praise it well deserved. 

I told Victor to take time to do his best. As soon as 
he was through with one phase, I had another ready 
for him. The outline and rivers were followed by 
state, capitals, large cities, mountains, lakes, and fi- 
nally products. It took him four months to complete 
this map in spare time. 

He did not like to be praised before the other pupils. 
He seemed to have a sort of perverted pride in his bad 



64 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

reputation. Perhaps, he was afraid the boys would 
call him "teacher's pet," or "sissy." I sensed the situ- 
ation and always praised him when we were alone. 
Often he wanted to stay in at recess and come early in 
the morning to work on his map. I always allowed 
him to do so. 

Once or twice I asked him to sharpen some pencils, 
and he offered to attend to it regularly, as well as to 
many other duties around the room. 

To correct his conduct on the playground, I said to 
him, "As you are the largest boy in school, will you 
please look around the playground for me once in a 
while to see that none of the children get hurt." The 
responsibility gave him self-respect. He walked 
around with an air of dignity and would come back to 
assure me that all was well. 

I firmly believe that every person has some hobby, 
something that he really enjoys doing, if one can only 
find it. Use tact to find it and then plan a way to use 
it. Let him believe that he is doing you a great favor. 
Always give him some responsibility for in that way he 
will develop the right kind of leadership. 

TRAINING IN RIGHT HABITS IS TRUE 
DISCIPLINE 

By Mildred V. W. Patterson 

When training in right habits, from kindergarten 
up, is the aim of teachers, there will be no need of the 
term discipline in the school vocabulary. The term, 
good disciplinarian, may have various meanings. It 
seems to me that a good disciplinarian is one who, by 
training her pupils in right habits, makes them re- 
sponsible for their acts to such a degree that if left 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 65 

alone anywhere from five minutes to an hour they will 
act and study as well as they would under supervision. 

You may say that few teachers could meet the test. 
If such is the fact, it is because their method is faulty. 
Unless children are receiving this training, their char- 
acter is not being developed, and they are not being 
prepared to face life's temptations. If the teacher is 
only a restraining force, the instant it is removed, 
whether in the first grade or in the high school, the 
mob spirit of disorder will prevail. 

Many disciplinary problems result from the mis- 
takes of the teacher. She often fails to plan her work 
thoroughly and systematically, to prepare sufficient 
work for the brighter and quicker pupils, to foresee 
and forestall opportunities for idleness and mischief, 
and to plan periods of intense application alternated 
with proper recreation or relaxation. 

The success or failure of a teacher is often deter- 
mined the first day of school. If possible, go into your 
classroom the day before school begins, have material 
and books ready and work carefully planned, so that 
with the entrance of the first child you will be able to 
begin to register and place him. See to it that every- 
one is given enough work that he is able to do, so there 
will not be an idle moment for mischief making. 

As soon as your pupils have settled into a routine 
program, have a talk with them as to the game they 
like best. From this point lead to the iniles of the 
game, and the necessity and use of the rules. Then 
ask what rules the pupils think are needed for a school- 
room and the reason for each rule suggested. 

Ask the pupils if they v/ould like to keep their own 
deportment mark. Let them vote to decide v/hat the 
rules will be. Have only a few at first and add to them 



66 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

as the need arises. When a rule is broken, talk about 
penalties for breaking rules in a game and let the chil- 
dren decide what will be the penalty for breaking a 
rule of the schoolroom. Guard against the children's 
making the penalties too severe. 

To keep account of the penalties have each child 
write on slips of paper the rules he has broken, the 
date, and his name. This is handed to the teacher, 
who sees that all facts are correct, and then it is 
dropped into a box for this purpose. At the end of the 
month, the slips are distributed to the pupils. As the 
teacher calls the roll each pupil states his deportment 
mark, having ascei'tained it by subtracting the total 
number of his demerits from 100. If a pupil has more 
than ten demerits, the slips are placed in a separate 
envelope and the pupil is asked to tell his parents that 
the teacher has the slips which will explain the low 
mark on his card and that she will be glad to show 
them to his parents. Since the proof of his guilt is in 
his own writing, the child cannot deny that he has 
misbehaved, that he has broken the rules he helped to 
make for the good of the school. 

One might say that this scheme implies that the 
teacher be present to see that the rules are carried 
out. It is necessary at first, that is, until the plan is 
well established and the pupils realize their responsi- 
bility. Then, some day when all the pupils are very 
busy, you may say, "I mu^t leave the room a moment. 
If there is anyone who cannot be trusted to keep the 
rules he may come with me." Remain outside only a 
moment the first time and upon returning inquire if 
anyone needs a slip. If anyone has broken a rule and 
does not own up the others immediately vote an addi- 
tional penalty for not playing fair. Gradually the time 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 67 

for remaining outside may be increased providing the 
pupib are well supplied with work. 

During the years in which this plan has been ef- 
fectively used, the only method I have needed as a cure 
for a child who at first could not be trusted was to say 
to him, "I must go to the office. Since I cannot trust 
you to behave here you must come with me." After 
stating my errand the principal would ask why the 
pupil was with me and I would reply, "Ask him." The 
pupil then had to confess that he could not be trusted. 
One such trip is usually enough for any child. 

Practically, the scheme has stood the test of years. 
I have often left the room and asked the principal or 
supervisor to step into my room after a few minutes. 
They have always found work and order prevalent. 

Psychologically this plan is sound as it is based on 
the principle that habits formed by constant repeti- 
tion of an act followed by pleasant emotions are 
strengthened while those followed by unpleasant emo- 
tions are weakened. 

Educationally we know that in youth the plastic 
nervous system may be molded, but it is alike sus- 
ceptible to good and bad habits. Habit is the repeti- 
tion of an act and character the summation of that 
habit. So it is the habits we must watch. 

THE TRANSFORMATION OF AN 
UNRULY SCHOOL 

By Signe Svendsgaard 

A rural school of thirty pupils; timid, but curious 
first graders, pets of the home and strangers to sys- 
tematic control ; impertinent second and third graders, 
bold in the presence of many; careless fifth graders, 



68 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

with the proverbial lank, overgrown, surly left-over 
in their midst; insolent eighth graders, important in 
their own conceit, but sadly lacking in that knowledge 
so essential to a successful graduation — such was my 
unruly school. 

Thirty children surcharged with mischief, watching 
me, their new teacher, with suspicious, impudent, wav- 
ering glances, eager to detect a false move which 
should be a signal for them again to take up the battle 
which had ended so disastrously to the teacher of the 
previous year — such was my first day. 

Thirty eager, trustful, smiling pupils carrying out 
with delightful zest a closing-day program to the un- 
disguised pleasure of adoring parents and a happy 
teacher; the walls of the schoolroom, literally covered 
with maps, booklets, drawings, and paper cuttings, 
proofs of busy minds and hands — such was my last 
day. 

How was this accomplished ? Let me tell you. 

Fifteen years in various schoolrooms had given me 
some knowledge of child nature. I had learned that 
the heart of the child is the same, whether that child 
works in a beautiful schoolhouse shaded by imposing 
skyscrapers, or in a little log cabin in the solitudes of 
the stately, dim pines, or in a rambling structure on 
the wind-swept prairies. 

Love is the one essence which reaches the heart of 
every child and which we must possess if we are to 
succeed in the unruly school. I do not mean the weak 
love which endeavors to please only the child's senses, 
but I mean the godlike love which seeks earnestly to 
help the child develop the best that is in him. Person- 
ally, I believe that this love should permeate the at- 
mosphere of the schoolroom, giving the child an un- 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 69 

conscious sense of pleasure and trust in the presence 
of the teacher. 

Harassing hours in my early teaching days had il- 
lustrated to me too clearly for my own comfort the 
saying, "Idleness is the devil's handmaiden." Later I 
added, "Misdirected energy is another of that infamous 
gentleman's helpers." I resolved that idleness and 
misdirected energy should soon become strangers to 
my unruly school. I endeavored to make the lessons 
appeal to tha child's consciousness, and I avoided 
assigning tasks which the child was not prepared to 
perform with a reasonable amount of effort. Thus 
misdirected energy was banned and, as a result, pleas- 
ant work came naturally to fill the place of idleness in 
the child's school life. If the child became impatient 
under an unwonted burden, a little examination would 
reveal to me that the fault could usually be traced to 
the burden and not to the child. 

Love and work will do wonders in a school, but there 
are cases where love must resort to punishment to be 
;worthy of its name. So it was in my school. 

"Temper justice with mercy, but make clear to the 
child his offense, that he may see the justice of his pun- 
ishment and appreciate the mercy given," was the rule 
not lightly disregarded by me those first turbulent 
weeks. 

The following rules greatly helped me to make my 
school a success: 

1. Be true. Do not pretend, or be affected. Chil- 
dren are keen observers. 

2. Be fair. Admit your mistake, if any has been 
made. 

3. Be courteous. Give the child no opportunity to 
desire to offend you. 



70 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

4. Have a sense of humor yourself and enjoy it in 
the child. Spontaneous, hearty laughter has never 
ruined child or school. 

5. Control yourself. If the child loses his better 
self in an outburst of passion, see that you do not. 

6. Search for the best in the child. Develop that 
best and forget those disagreeable traits. Probably 
you possess some that are not dissimilar. 

7. Love the child first, last, and always. Pvcmember 
that love is the key to the child's heart. Without this 
key no teacher can hope to influence the child to desire 
to live up to the best that is in him. 

GOOD PHYSICAL CONDITIONS ESSEN- 
TIAL TO DISCIPLINE 

By Nellie V. Tauscher 

One of the most perplexing problems that meet the 
new teacher to-day is the control of the school. If the 
teacher cannot solve this problem in a satisfactory way 
during her first term in a given school, it is apt to mean 
failure in that school. Among the questions that a 
school board first asks about a new teacher are the fol- 
lowing: "Can this teacher keep good order?" "What 
success has he or she had in managing pupils before 
applying here?" 

Is the control of the school necessary ? Almost every- 
one agrees that it is, although many disagree as to the 
method of control and as to who should control. 

Having had some experience, I should like to give a 
few points on the control of a school that I have found 
valuable in my own teaching. 

I believe that the most important thing a teacher 
must do, if she wants to be called a good disciplinarian 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 71 

— and being a good disciplinarian usually paves the 
way for one to become a very good teacher — is to try 
to keep in the best of health. The teacher who knows 
all of the rules of good health and keeps them will come 
to the schoolhouse in the morning well-rested and 
fully capable of meeting all the trials that arise during 
the day. Half the battle is fought if you feel like fight- 
ing it, and the children know how you feel by your ap- 
pearance and manner. 

A very important thing in school control is to be 
sure that the health conditions for the child are as 
good as possible. See that the child is seated properly, 
feet flat on the floor and arms comfortable when on 
desk. Have a good thermometer and keep the tem- 
perature regulated. I find that children do their best 
work in a room with a temperature of 68° F. If the 
temperature runs much higher or lower than this, the 
children become uneasy and give much more attention 
to their bodily comfort than to the lessons that should 
be studied at the time. 

Ventilation is also very necessary. I do not think it 
possible to have too much fresh air, providing 
draughts are avoided. Impure air makes the pupils 
listless, sleepy, and inattentive. Guard the children's 
health as much as you can, for children who do not 
feel well are cross, fretful, and peevish and make more 
trouble on the playground than children who feel well 
and are cheerful and happy. 

Try to keep the window shades adjusted so that the 
sun does not shine into a pupil's eyes. It is bad for his 
eyes and causes the child to fidget. It is also a tempta- 
tion for him to use a mirror to reflect light rays into a 
schoolmate's eyes. Temptation should be kept out of 
the way of children as far as possible. 



72 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

I think it a poor practice to lay down too many rules 
on the first day of school. It is a better plan to simply 
tell the children how to pass to and from class, how to 
get their wraps, and so on, and then later on in the 
week to lay down a few rules that you see are needed. 
After a rule is once laid down, see that the children do 
not break it without hearing from you in some way. 
If they find that they can break your first rule you may 
be sure that they will break all the others which you 
make during the remainder of the school term. 

"But," the young teacher asks, "what am I to do if 
the child breaks any rule that I lay down for him to 
keep?" I will say in answer that your own judgment 
v/ill usually tell you. It is a good plan for the punish- 
ment to be in close relation to the offense, if possible. 
For example, if a boy fights on the playground and 
fighting is forbidden have him stay in the schoolroom 
until he can play on the grounds without fighting. 

This leads to the question, "Shall I use whipping as 
a punishment?" I never have, for I really believe 
there are very, very few cases where a whipping 
would be of any lasting benefit to the child. 

One great secret of successful school management is 
to keep the children busy. Assign lessons sufficiently 
long to take up all of the time of the children of 
average intelligence; and if the brighter ones get 
through before the others, have them read library 
books or help the slower pupils. 

Be careful always to deal justly with a child who 
you think has done wrong, for there is nothing which 
will make children think less of a teacher than in- 
justice to a fellow playmate. Do not take one pupil's 
word alone, for reported wrongdoing. It is better to 
hear from at least three eye witnesses. 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 73 

Lying, stealing, and cheating are annoying habits of 
some children, but do not be too hasty at first to pun- 
ish for these. You do not know what training the 
child has had along these lines. While he probably 
realizes he ought not to do the things he does, still he 
really does not see all the wrong in so doing, or the 
harm that comes afterwards. For these wrongdoings 
a good heart-to-heart talk and teaching from day to 
day will accomplish much more good than a whipping, 
for a whipping is not apt to reform an evil doer, but 
only serves to make him more cautious that he is not 
caught a second time. 

I believe that there are very, very few bad boys and 
girls. I have never had to deal with any, but I have 
found a great many mischievous, thoughtless, careless, 
and lazy children. They are hard to deal with. But in 
the end, the teacher vv^ho can successfully manage a 
roomful of children who have natures so different, can 
feel that she has attempted and accomplised something 
for which she may well be proud. Her reward will be 
to know that she has the respect and love of her pupils 
and patrons and that she has given her pupils some of 
the lessons they will need in order to become good 
citizens. 

STARTING THE YEAR ^A^ITH A 
CLEAN SLATE 

"By Marian Nelson 

I found my first school to be a neat little building 
surrounded by a big yard. I learned I was to have 
sixteen pupils in six different grades, enough to keep 
one busy without spending most of the time in disci- 
plining, I thought. 



74 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Some of the people in the community soon filled my 
ears with tales of the terrible times the teacher had 
gone through the year before. Being very inexperi- 
enced, I was not frightened by these stories. But on 
that first memorable morning when I saw my pupils as- 
semble, some of my confidence left me. 

As I believe that the first week means that the vic- 
tory is half won for the rest of the year, or that there 
will be trouble from then on, I tried to begin right. 
After ringing the bell I quickly divided the children 
into two lines and told them to see how quietly they 
could march in. Each child was allowed to select his 
own seat, providing it was the right size. The chil- 
dren were then informed that they could keep these 
seats just as long as they wanted to ; it all depended on 
their actions. Children like a sense of responsibility. 

I did not spend any time laying down a list of rules 
but said, "So far each one of you has perfect deport- 
ment and I am sure you will want to keep it that way." 
Then I wrote the children's names in a list on the 
board with green chalk and placed a large "100" in 
red after each name. I told the children to see how 
long they could keep their record perfect. I illus- 
trated what the results of transgression would be, tak- 
ing one boy's name for an example. If George should 
do something to forfeit his "100" it would be erased 
and "93" or "99" (according to v/hat he had done) 
would be written in its place with white chalk, thus 
marring the appearance of the record. 

Then I produced a large piece of white cardboard 
on which all the children's names were written. I ex- 
plained that each time a child's deportment had re- 
mained perfect for a week, a large gold star would 
shine after his name; but if by some terrible mis- 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 75 

chance it should fall below "95" in one week a large 
black star would disgrace his name. 

Some weeks I change the ways of keeping the rec- 
ord. For instance, I leave the blackboard blank and 
consider the deportment perfect so long as the names 
do not appear on the board. A few times I have had 
the children keep their record of deportment and re- 
port it at the end of each day. At these times I em- 
phasize especially the lesson of honesty with them- 
selves. It is gratifying to see their response. 

This plan has succeeded beyond my fondest dreams. 
During the first month, the lowest deportment was 
"97." I do all in my power to make the classes inter- 
esting so that the children will have an incentive to 
study. At first the children were so quiet that I feared 
it would be a strain on their nerves. To help this we 
have several short but snappy periods of physical ex- 
ercise each day. At recess and noon I go out and play 
with the children. This creates a spirit of friendship 
among all. 

LET US DISCIPLINE OURSELVES AND 
STUDY OUR PUPILS 

By Ruth B. Miller 

Good discipline is the creating of an attitude in our 
boys and girls that will enable them to live normally 
among other people. It is the disciplinarian's place to 
mold habits of thought in such a way that throughout 
life the child will habitually respond to law and order. 

All mental and spiritual growth depends upon right 
thinking. How to think is of more importance than 
how to read. Yet we carefully determine a child's 
mental capacity and teach him to read, step by step. 



76 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

We would not expect him to read a difficult bit of lit- 
erature on the first day of school. Why not grade his 
moral capacity and proceed just as carefully step by 
step? We cannot expect the child who has spent six 
years of his life in acquiring the wrong habits of 
thought to respond in the same way that the child from 
the orderly home responds. We not only have to build 
his habits of thought, but we must undo the habits of 
years. 

Suppose the little Bolshevik enters your schoolroom. 
Correction does not interest him. He has learaed to 
slide the command "Don't" smoothly from ear to ear. 
It no longer even disturbs him. He has been talked 
"at" instead of "to" all his life. Inattention has been 
a safety valve for his nervous system. He is habitu- 
ally inattentive. 

The first law of nature, self-preservation, has made 
of him a liar and a cheater. It was the easiest way. 
It was the necessary way because he knew no other 
way. Your task is not to make him conform to estab- 
lished rules but to make him want to conform. You 
must teach him that in life, evasion of one's duties is 
not the easiest way, the practical way, nor the neces- 
sary way. You must give him something that will be 
a better way. 

But how can you change his attitude? Each indi- 
vidual case must be handled differently. What is a 
moral problem for one boy is not for another. The 
whole question of how and where to begin depends 
upon what you have to begin with. These few rules, 
however, may be safely followed in any case. 

Because all discipline must start with self-discipline 
you must begin with yourself. Never exhibit anger, 
selfishness, or mental laziness. You must be the thing 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 77 

you want your boy to be. He is watching you. Never 
command. It is human nature to resent a command 
just as it is human nature to comply with a courteous 
request. 

Be cheerful. Cheerfulness is a valuable gift. You 
are dealing with plastic young minds. Establish cheer- 
ful habits of thought. Happiness is the birthright of 
childhood. It is as natural for a child to be happy as 
it is for a bird to sing. Make that happiness a life 
habit — for happiness is, after all, a habit. Wrongdo- 
ing and happiness do not go hand in hand. Cheerful 
thinking results in right thinking. 

Keep your room clean, tidy, and as attractive as 
possible. We instinctively try to fit in with our sur- 
roundings. Your boy has a better chance to be physi- 
cally and mentally clean if he is surrounded by order- 
liness and beauty. Let the untidy boy help you keep 
the room tidy. Ask him to care for the plants, to dust 
the pictures, and so forth. After such work give him 
an opportunity to wash his hands, offering him your 
own spotless towel. Never call attention to the un- 
clean. Stress the ideal. 

Every human being has some pet interest. Get ac- 
quainted with your difficult pupil's pet interest. Give 
him an opportunity to work on it and so lead to new 
interests. One of my unruly boys was apparently 
without a single interest. After exploring for days I 
stumbled upon his one interest quite by accident — 
literally stumbled upon it — and it was an alligator! 
He had hidden the baby alligator in the cloakroom, and 
little Oscar had not stayed "put." Right then and 
there we studied alligators in spite of the fact that the 
program on my door promised arithmetic to the pos- 
sible visitor. This boy knew about alligators, and, for 



78 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

the first time in his life, he had the joy of telling what 
he knew to someone who did not know. It gives a fel- 
low such a feeling of self-respect! Makes him want 
to comb his hair and pat his tie. After his interesting 
recital he was perfectly willing to listen to what I had 
to say of the lands that breed alligators. I v/ish that I 
had known my subject as well as he knew his. This 
boy had previously appeared stupid because his inter- 
ests were different. I would have appeared stupid 
had he judged my knowledge by his interests. 

Is your little Bolshevik physically fit? Perhaps 
adenoids are causing the trouble. When you had a 
cold and could not breathe properly for two days, did 
you feel kindly towards the world or did you resent 
the world? Perhaps your boy has not been able to 
breathe properly for years. 

Are you sure that he had a breakfast ? He may need 
a glass of milk instead of a scolding. Or perhaps he 
had the wrong breakfast. After struggling desper- 
ately to register an idea you may learn that fried 
onions and liver have claimed all of his registering 
powers. Inattention sometimes means concentrated 
attention in another direction. 

Introduce variety in your work. You may be in- 
tensely interested in a subject, but you grow tired of 
having it always presented in the same way. Dress 
old subjects up in new ideas. It is the new or unusual 
that attracts. 

Have frequent rest periods. The physically tired 
child becomes mentally tired. The best lecture grows 
tiresome after a long period of attention without op- 
portunity to relax. 

Boys and girls are, after all, but little men and wom- 
en. You can understand motives if you will but think. 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 79 

"How would I act or feel in his place?" Instead of 
thinking that he is a bad boy, let us think, "He has 
made a mistake. I must find the reason for the mis- 
take and help him." 

Please let us discipline ourselves and study our 
children. 

THE FORGETFUL CHILD 

By Florence Weiland 

There is probably no excuse more annoying or more 
frequently given to a teacher than the one, "I forgot." 

Jack was in the sixth grade. How he ever reached 
that round in the ladder of education was a puzzle for 
he forgot to dot his i's and cross his t's ; he forgot his 
dollar signs ; he forgot his decimal points, which lapse 
always involved his examples in tangles for which 
there was positively no remedy. He forgot to read the 
footnotes in his history lesson; forgot to draw a map 
of North America in geography class ; forgot to learn 
his spelling lesson; forgot to look up his dictionary 
words ; forgot the excuse for absence ; forgot the note 
his mother had given him for the teacher; indeed, he 
forgot so much more than he remembered that it was 
a wonder he got around in this busy world without 
being accounted witless. 

It had been the same old story from his cradle up 
through all the grades to the sixth, but there he met a 
teacher who vowed that the consequences of this boy's 
failing should find him out. She had heard all about 
him from his last teacher, and so she was ready for 
him. 

The second morning everybody found his seat after 
the bell rang except Master Jack. He stood against 



80 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

the wall looking dubiously first at the teacher and then 
at his companions. 

"What's the matter?" asked the teacher. 

"I forgot where I sat yesterday, and I don't know 
where my books are." 

"What's your name? I forgot." Miss Ellen said 
with studied emphasis on the two words "I forgot." 
"Were you with us yesterday ? I forgot." 

"Yes, ma'am. I think I sat here." 

"Maybe these are your books. I think I must have 
forgotten all about your face. Well, suppose you sit 
here for a while." 

Jack sat down on one of the front seats not very 
much pleased. 

When the arithmetic class was called Jack asked to 
borrow some paper and a pencil. "I forgot to get 
mine," he added. 

The teacher promptly said: "Then I think I shall 
excuse you while you go after it. We can have an 
extra session after school." 

Jack went out pouting, but he came back with his 
materials. 

During the forenoon he asked Miss Ellen when he 
could have his own seat. She promptly said she for- 
got to see about it. That afternoon Jack came in with 
hands and face very much soiled. When he was asked 
why he did not wash himself he gave the same excuse, 
so Miss Ellen sent him out of the room to make himself 
presentable. 

While he was out of the room the principal came in 
and said a gentleman had sent tickets to all the boys 
and girls in the school to attend an interesting show 
that evening. Tickets were given to all the children 
in the room. Of course, as Jack was not there he lost 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 81 

his. When he came in the principal was gone. Jack 
heard all about the show at recess and afterwards he 
asked the teacher why the principal had not left a 
ticket for him, "I forgot all about you," said Miss 
Ellen. Jack sat and looked at a comer, forgot to learn 
his spelling lesson, and v/as marked in the stay-after- 
school class again. 

Things went on thus for a week ; Jack was left out 
of as many things as possible, and the reason always 
given was "I forgot." When he asked, as he did every 
session, if he could have a desk all by himself because 
he did not like to sit in front. Miss Ellen would reply : 
"I think you are better off here. If I should give you 
that back seat I might forget all about you. At pres- 
ent I need to keep you right under my eyes so as to 
help you to remember. Something has to be done for 
the boy who forgets, you know." 

Jack lost so much that first week that he began to 
think about his failing. And when one begins to 
know he has a fault he is pretty sure to be on the road 
toward getting rid of it. 

One day Miss Ellen kept him after school for a little 
talk. She knew that Jack was feeling the conse- 
quences, so now was the time for a few suggestions. 

**Jack," she said kindly, "your forgetting so much 
is all a notion. You don't try to remember. You can 
remember if you try. You can develop your memory 
if you will be firm in your attempts. Now, I am going 
to give you the back seat, but it will be taken from you 
after I hear you say those bad old words four times. 
When you v/ant to say 'I forgot,' say *I will remember.* 
Think only of remembering certain things, and your 
battle is half won. Come, Jack, is it *I forgot' or *I 
will remember'?" 



82 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Jack began to improve. He is still improving. He 
has had to take a front seat twice since the compact, 
but the last time v^^as many weeks ago. His teacher 
hopes he will not need to go there again. 

HOW I SOLVED THE PROBLEM OF 
PUNCTUALITY 

By Ida M. Eberhart 

My wide experience as a teacher in the rural schools 
has led me to believe that the matter of punctuality is 
not at all a difficult one. At least I have not found it so, 
having had very few tardy marks in all of my exper- 
ience, which is several times greater than that of the 
average rural teacher. 

In the first place, I am very punctual myself. Even 
though I do m.y own janitor work I manage to have the 
schoolroom warm and comfortable by eight-thirty even 
on the coldest mornings. I have driven or walked to 
school from three to five miles in the last five years, but 
I have never failed to have the schoolroom ready when 
the children arrived. In the school I attended when a 
child, nine o'clock often found the pupils assembled in 
a cold room with no teacher there. 

In the second place, I find out early in the term what 
that particular school enjoys most for recreation. 
Sometimes it is a good story, told or read. It may be 
lively singing, current events, calisthenics, marching, 
dramatization, or even some interesting number 
games. On the previous evening I announce the pro- 
gram for the following morning. Almost invariably, 
the next morning finds everyone on time. Often I am 
entreated to call school earlier or to take part of the 
noon and recess periods that more time can be devoted 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 83 

to some interesting recreation. I am very careful, 
however, to see that outdoor exercise is not neglected 
for any reason whatever. 

Another method I have tried with good success is to 
organize the school into two divisions; namely, "The 
Hustlers/' and "The Rustlers," the first to be composed 
of the girls, the second of the boys. Sometimes, I mere- 
ly give the pupils on the right side of the room the 
former name and those on the left the latter. At the 
end of a month, or other specified time, the side having 
the fewest tardy marks will receive a little treat from 
the opposing side. If there are no tardy marks on 
either side both sides will be rewarded by some little 
remembrance from the teacher. 

In some cases perfect attendance certificates are an 
incentive. And last, but not least, is the quiet insist- 
ence upon orderly habits of all kinds. Teach the chil- 
dren the importance of putting everything, both at 
home and at school, in its proper place ; of planning in 
the evening for the following short morning ; of avoid- 
ing all late gatherings which rob them of their sleep or 
make them oversleep; and of retiring and rising at a 
definite hour. Thus, in all ordinary cases at least, the 
problem of punctuality will be solved. 

WHAT AN ATTRACTIVE SCHOOLROOM 
MEANS TO THE CHILD 

By Dorothy C. Retsloff 

Time and money are both well spent in beautifying 
the schoolroom. We cannot make it too attractive. 
Many children are born in drab, colorless homes and 
live all their years in such surroundings. The refining 
influence of a neat, bright schoolroom is much greater 



84 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

than we realize. All children admire and appreciate 
beauty. Those who attend schools where the rooms 
are tastefully decorated and made beautiful are less 
inclined to come to school dirty and unkempt, less in- 
clined to chalk-mark the walls, much less inclined to 
be rude and unmanageable. Why? Because the very 
atmosphere is one of refinement, and that alone helps 
to make better boys and girls. 

Talking of heaven one day with my class of primary 
little folks, I asked, "What do you think heaven is 
like?" Many and varied were the answers, but the 
one that warmed my heart was given by the six-year- 
old son of a widow who "took in" washings to support 
herself and her two children. After I had asked the 
question Robert, the widow's child, sat for some min- 
utes without looking up, then he said slowly as if 
weighing every word, "Heaven is like our school was 
on speaking day." 

I recalled his delight on the day to which he re- 
ferred. I had draped gay bunting from window to 
window, banked the platform with moss, ferns, and 
autumn leaves. He knew of no other beauty. His 
home was drab. It reeked with the smells from boiler 
and tubs. The gay bright schoolroom was a heaven 
to him. 

I have heard teachers say that they could not afford 
this or that in the way of decoration for their rooms. 
If the heart is right many a teacher can afford to buy 
a bit of brightness to gladden the life of a little child. 

A teacher once said to me, "What a nice idea it is, 
to have plants in your schoolroom. I'd like to have 
some too, but I can't afford to buy them." Yet I knew 
that she could and did afford to buy a box of chocolate 
candy every week. When it comes to making the 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 85 

choice between candy for ourselves or plants for our 
schoolroom let us forget self and* please the little folks 
that we have in our keeping. 

The practice of placing before our pupils, bright, 
pretty, cheerful things — objects that inspire happy, 
healthy thoughts — is of inestimable value. When 
the beauty of their surroundings enters their souls, 
then the beauty within themselves will begin to mani- 
fest itself in beautiful acts and deeds. 

DESKS IN ORDER! 

By Mary G. Atkins 

I have found a very interesting way to arouse the 
children to keep their desks in order. It is also a means 
of developing teamwork and promoting patriotism. I 
have as many small American flags as there are rows 
of desks. When every desk in a row is in order, a flag 
is placed on the front desk. 

It is understood, however, that if at any time the 
teacher finds one desk untidy, the flag will be removed 
from that row. This leads the children to try to in- 
fluence the other members of their team to be orderly, 
thereby developing teamwork. 

Patriotism is inculcated by m.y explaining that our 
country is a country of law and order, for which reason 
no row may be allowed to have the flag unless its desks 
are in order. This also affords an opportunity to teach 
obedience. 

To aid in keeping the bits of paper from the floor 
(for the floor around the desk must be orderly too) 
each child has a little box on his desk, into which all 
scraps are put. The children make the boxes of uni- 
form size, and color them with crayon or paint them. 



86 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

There is a larger flag, about two feet long, to be car- 
ried by the leader of the row that has kept its small 
flag for the greatest part of a week, or if preferred, a 
month. 

The enthusiasm aroused by these simple devices is 
remarkable. 

OUR IMPROVEMENT CLUB AND ITS 
WORK 

By Ruth E. Carpenter 

Five years ago, I was teaching a little country school 
in South Jersey. The schoolhouse was new so we felt 
that we must keep it in good condition and make it as 
homelike as possible. We had no pictures inside and 
no lawn or flowers outside. We felt that everything 
ought to harmonize with the new schoolhouse. At 
first I just mentioned that we ought to keep papers 
picked up outdoors as well as in the room. Some chil- 
dren were very careful but there were many children 
who were careless. 

Finally, we formed what we called "The Agricul- 
tural School Improvement Club." We elected officers 
— a president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer. 
We also elected inspectors whose duty it was to speak 
to children about personal appearance, schoolroom 
floor and desks, blackboards, cloakrooms, school 
grounds, toilets, and the flower beds. 

During the winter we bought two pictures, one of 
"George Washington" and one of "The Landing of the 
Pilgrims." We ordered frames for the pictures at the 
same time. 

Every two weeks the Improvement Club met on 
Friday from three to four. The children took com- 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 87 

plete charge of these meetings. The president brought 
the meetings to order. The reports of the secretary, 
treasurer, committees, and inspectors were given. 
These reports were listened to very carefully by the 
children, and any mistake was noticed by even the 
smallest youngster. The inspection of the children's 
clothing, and their hands and faces, and of the school- 
room and school grounds really solved the question as 
far as neatness and care of them were concerned. The 
children took great pride in their own appearance, also 
in the care of their desks. No one thought of marking 
on the desks or walls, or of throwing paper on the 
floors or the school grounds. Very few children ever 
had to be reported for any carelessness. 

The Club gave debates and some of the children or 
mothers were asked to act as judges. The younger 
children gave recitations. Sometimes a child would 
draw from memory a map he had had in a geography 
lesson, and sometimes a child would volunteer to tell 
something he had read. We always invited the par- 
ents to our meetings. During the year the Club gave 
two plays, and by charging ten cents admission we 
added to our treasury fund. After each play we had re- 
freshments, donated by mothers, and in these socials 
everyone became better acquainted and many offered 
to help us in any way possible to make our school the 
best in the township. 

When Spring came the Club decided that we ought 
to have flowers to make our school grounds more at- 
tractive. Since no grass grew on the sandy ground 
around the school, some people laughed when we spoke 
of planting flowers. Nevertheless, we said we were 
going to try. The boys brought garden tools, manure, 
and fertilizer from home. We spent part of two noon 



88 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

hours getting ferns from a near-by woods, which we 
planted all around the schoolhouse. A committee was 
appointed to water them and to keep the children from 
stepping on them. 

On one side of the school grounds, the flower garden 
was laid out. It was divided into three sections. The 
primary grades had one; the intermediate grades the 
next section ; and the seventh and eighth grades the one 
nearest the road. The children decided what they 
wanted to plant and did all the work themselves. The 
primary children planted forget-me-nots; the fourth, 
fifth, and sixth grades planted rosebushes and other 
bushes; and the seventh and eighth grades made a 
large round bed of pansies. It was not long before the 
beautiful velvety pansies were brightening the corner. 
People who had been sure nothing would grow on the 
school grounds were beginning to ask questions and to 
commend the children. The little bed of forget-me-nots 
was the prettiest of all. Late in the summer the little 
flowers bloomed and the whole primary flower bed was 
a mass of tiny blue flowers. 

I feel that the Improvement Club was a great suc- 
cess. It was not hard to do our best because every- 
body wanted to play the game right. The Club spirit 
of cooperation and improvement entered into every- 
thing we did in school. We had to live up to our sur- 
roundings and we had to do our best because the feel- 
ing of the school was against anything but the best. 
The whole neighborhood seemed to catch the spirit 
through the children and the good feeling lingered 
long after the school term was over. The lessons the 
children learned in caring for themselves and the 
school property, and in governing themselves will 
never be forgotten. 



SCHOOL MANAGEMENT 89 

PERTAINING TO SCHOOL GROUNDS— 
AN "ORIGINAL" 

Bj^ Vida M. Bates 

Do you remember those pages of fine print in your 
geometry textbook with problem after problem stated 
for your solution — or despair? Several times the 
writer has found just as baffling problems on entering 
a new school, one being: An ugly school ground may 
be made attractive. 

Given: (1) From one-sixteenth to one-half acre of 
open ground, possibly in a worse-than-natural state; 
(2) A group of children apparently blind to the beau- 
tiful; (3) An uncertain length of time, perhaps only 
a term or a year. 

To use the given means to substitute "beauty for 
ashes." Like genuine geometry, that's more literal 
than figurative. 

Solution : Having made the effort to solve this prob- 
lem in various locations, I shall try to give a composite 
picture of my methods. 

Whether one finds the grounds totally neglected or 
just severely neat with little to beautify, the challenge 
must be met v/ith the cooperation of the pupils. Even 
a landscape gardener and a thousand dollars could do 
little of permanent value if the children were not 
proud of the work and interested in it. The teacher 
need not feel that the lack of funds and of artistic 
skill prevents her from meeting the problem. 

It is well to begin the project in the Fall when school 
first opens. Rubbish should be cleared away, and any 
noxious weeds destroyed at once. This provides the 
teacher with material for an interesting study of seed 
dispersion, as well as weed extermination. 



90 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Somehow February and March arouse one's latent 
interest in seed catalogues. Through judicious use of 
them, the teacher may learn just how much or how 
little the boys and girls know about flowers and 
shrubs, as well as which varieties are found around 
their homes. 

Then, when plans are being formed for celebrating 
Arbor Day, somebody may suggest bringing a root or 
a few bulbs to add to the beauty of the school grounds. 
Let everybody have a chance to contribute, even if it 
means three or four lilac bushes or bunches of golden 
glow. Plan, with the help of the children, just where 
the tall plants and shrubs will do best, and how the 
flower beds may be placed so as not to interfere with 
the playground and yet have the right amount of sun- 
shine. Many of the youngsters' ideas are excellent. 

Several advantages are derived from using home- 
grown material, some of which are: 

1. The plants are more sure to grow because they 
are acclimated to the region. 

2. Greater displays are possible because they mean 
no strain on the pocketbook. 

3. Best of all, the children learn to recognize the ad- 
vantage of flowers at home and to take a personal in- 
terest in their individual gifts to the school. 

May I now declare that I have proved the possibility 
of making an ugly school ground beautiful for years 
to come? 



SEAT WORK 



SEAT WORK PROVIDED BY MANY 
SCHOOL SUBJECTS 

By" Mamie T. Johnson 

Because the little folks in the primary department 
of a rural school cannot be given an assignment and 
told to study their lessons, they usually find school a 
dull place. A great deal of the teacher's time must 
necessarily be given to the older pupils. The little 
children are left to copy the reading lesson, fill long 
pages full of words or numbers, or otherwise employ 
themselves. 

Much of the so-called "busy work" is a clear waste 
of time. The child does not come to school to be "kept 
busy" merely, — he can usually keep himself busy in 
the big out of doors if given the opportunity. He is 
sent to school to engage in useful and instructive ac- 
tivities. His seat work must be designed for that pur- 
pose. It must be educative, instructive, interesting, 
and easy to prepare. 

For the purpose of keeping my seat work material 
properly arranged and classified, I divide it into two 
general classes, i. e., educative seat work and play seat 
work. This does not mean that the latter is not educa- 
tive. It is, distinctly so. Its purpose, however, is gen- 
eral rather than specific. It trains for keenness of ob- 
servation, manipulation of materials, and the cultiva- 



92 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

tion of gssthetie appreciation. It is called play seat 
v/ork because it is the type of work that children love 
to do. 

Educative seat work is that which bears directly on 
the lesson and is an assignment for study. At the 
close of the reading, number, or language lesson, each 
pupil is given an envelope or box containing the seat 
work. Directions are given very explicitly. To make 
sure that the little children visualize just what they 
are to do, I have them tell me or show me just how 
they will carry out my instructions. As soon as they 
have completed their work to my satisfaction they 
may get their play seat work, i. e., puzzles, modeling, 
weaving, and so forth. 

Bright pupils in the fourth, fifth, and sixth grades 
who prepare their own assignments quickly and easily 
should help in the preparation of material for the 
primary pupils. Mounting pictures, printing cards, 
and making the envelopes may well be left to them. 
Only work that is accurate and neat should be accept- 
ed. Such assistance on the part of the older children 
not only lessens the burden of the busy teacher, but 
provides profitable seat work for their own spare 
moments. 

Every rural school should be provided with a hecto- 
graph or mimeograph, and two printing outfits, a 
large one with one inch type and a small rubber type 
press. A set of rubber stamps will also prove useful. 

Seed catalogues, old magazines, and pictures should 
be collected and saved. If one is limited in his paper 
supply, old wall paper sample books may be used for 
mounting pages and pictures; otherwise construction 
papers should be purchased liberally, with a preference 
for dark browns, blues, and grays. 



SEAT WORK 93 

Reading Seat Work 

As reading is the most important subject in the 
child's curriculum, m.uch thought and care must be 
given to the preparation of the reading seat work. 
Remember that while the child is at his seat he fixes, 
by constant drill and association, the new words, 
phrases, and sentences that you have taught him. 
Therefore he should be plentifully supplied with pic- 
tures and printed or written copies of the new words. 
Make a list of all the nouns found in the primer. Keep 
your eye open for pictures, large and small, of these 
objects, asking the children to cooperate with you in 
collecting them. Keep a special box for this purpose. 

The following devices have proved very successful 
in my school. 

1. Matching Words with Pictures 

Draw or trace small pictures of objects, especially 
those in the first two or three lessons, on two-inch 
squares of paper. Now run off at least a hundred 
copies of each picture on the mimeograph or dupli- 
cator. Do not cut them yourself but have the children 
cut along the lines as an exercise in cutting. With the 
small rubber type printing press print the names of 
these objects on narrow strips of white paper. Fill 
an envelope for each child in your class with at least 
a dozen pictures of each object and a dozen or more 
corresponding names. Have the child match the 
words with the pictures. 

2. Story Builders 

Have pupils cut and trim pages from old readers 
and match them so that there are several of one kind. 
Mount them on pieces of cardboard or wall paper so 
that they will not wear out. Select the best page in 



M PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

each set and keep it intact for copy. The other pages 
should be cut into strips, a sentence or part of a sen- 
tence on each strip. Place the copy and the strips to- 
gether in an envelope and prepare enough of such en- 
velopes for your entire class. Have the children build 
the story from the sentences. 

3. Scrapbooks 

Select the most interesting pages from the discarded 
readers and mount them on sheets of gray construction 
paper. Tie all of these pages together to make one or 
more scrapbooks for the reading table. 

Language Seat Work 

1. Picture Sets 

Cut colored pictures of flowers from old seed cata- 
logues. Mount these on rectangles of gray mount- 
ing paper three and one-half by five and one-half 
inches. Print the name of each flower just below the 
picture. Put ten or twelve such pictures in each en- 
velope. Sentences, riddles, paragraphs, and stories 
may be constructed about these pictures. Similar sets 
may be made with pictures of vegetables, animals, 
fruits, and birds. Innumerable uses will be found for 
these picture sets. 

2. Booklet Work 

Ask children to illustrate the stories they have 
learned. This may take the form of drawing, paint- 
ing, or paper cutting. The best specimens should be 
bound. 

Phonics Seat Work 

1. Select any number of pages from old readers, 
magazines, and spellers. The sentences or stories 



SEAT WORK 95 

need not be complete or interesting. Each child is 
provided with several pages and given the following 
instructions : 

Find the new phonograms you have learned and 
put a circle around each one wherever it occurs. 

Find all words beginning with a certain letter. 

Mark a red line under all of the words you know. 
2. Prepare strips of manila tag or strips of plain 
■white paper one by five inches. At the top of each pa- 
per print, with large type, one of the simple phono- 
grams learned. Ask each child to make a list of the 
words he knows which contain this phonogram. Other 
sets may contain single consonants or groups such as 
st7'y ch, st, wh. 

Number Seat Work 

1. To Learn Time 

Hectograph a large number of clock faces. Give 
each child several sheets of these and instruct him to 
place the hands on the face of the clock to indicate the 
time of day as described on the blackboard. 

2. To Learn Shape 

Make a set of cards two inches by five inches for 
each pupil. Divide into five spaces one inch by two 
inches. Jit the top of each paste colored triangles, 
squares, and circles. Give each child a box containing 
a large number of such figures. Have the children 
match them according to shape. 

3. To Learn Direction 

On cards one inch square stamp an arrow, making a 
red, blue, green, and brown one for each child. Ask 
the children to make their blue arrow point north, 
their red arrow point south, and so forth. 



96 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Play Seat Work 

My play seat work is largely project work: building 
a Japanese, Eskimo, or Indian scene on the sand table, 
which involves cutting, folding, painting, and so forth ; 
equipping a doll's house, which involves weaving, sew- 
ing, and paper folding ; and making posters and book- 
lets, which involves paper cutting, painting, and as- 
sembling. We also do rafRa work, clay modeling, and 
other forais of construction v/ork suitable for primary 
children. 

TiMESAviNG Devices 

Have a large cupboard with spacious shelves for 
your seat work. 

Keep each set in its own particular place. 

On the outside of each box or envelope paste a sam- 
ple of the seat work contained inside, also suggestive 
ways of increasing its usefulness. 

Have monitors distribute and collect the seat work. 

Train children to replace all sets in their proper 
boxes or envelopes. 

Allow children to assist in making their own seat 
work whenever practicable. 

THE APPEAL OF SEAT WORK NOT 
LIMITED TO THE EYE AND HAND 

By May L. Person 

The problem of educative seat work in the school 
applies particularly to the younger children who have 
not learned to study and who need something to keep 
them busy and interested, something which besides 
keeping them occupied, will be a stepping stone in the 
path to learning. What we shall give the child to ac- 
complish this end is the question which confronts us 



SEAT WORK 97 

with the opening of school in the Fall. The children 
are eager and ready to work. What shall we give 
them to keep up this interest and meet their need ? 

The child, we are told, learns of the outside world 
through his five senses of seeing, hearing, tasting, 
smelling, and touching. Therefore I plan the seat 
work with reference to the five senses. It is true that 
seat work most often appeals to the eye and hand, but 
the appeal of the other three senses may also be met, 
giving variety and zest to the work. Variety of work 
prevents weariness. It is said, "Keep a child busy and 
you keep him out of mischief," but when he uses a cer- 
tain set of nerves and muscles too long he becomes 
restless and often disorderly. Therefore I find that 
there must be variety and something to appeal to each 
of the five sense avenues of approach. 

Work which develops the taste, smelling, and hear- 
ing is very difficult to arrange in the schoolroom. 
Fruit or vegetables of the same color may be cut into 
small pieces and given to the children to sort by the 
senses of taste and smell. The leaves of such plants 
as catnip, sage, parsley, cabbage, celery, mint, winter- 
green, rosemary, and lavendar may be mixed and the 
children asked to sort them by the sense of smell. 
Clover, dandelions, and garden flowers may also be 
used. In like manner different spices may be tied up 
in cloth and used. Foods may be sorted as to sweet or 
sour, dried or fresh, green or ripe. In connection with 
this work a writing lesson may be copied from the 
board as "My apple is sweet," or "My leaf is from the 
sage plant." The child must judge for himself whether 
to copy "My apple is sweet," "My apple is sour," "My 
leaf is from the sage plant," or "My leaf is from the 
catnip plant." A child may draw a picture of the 



98 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

fruits he likes best, following out the idea of number 
by making as many as the figures on the board in- 
dicate. 

Work in training the ear has usually been taken 
"with the children as a whole. It makes a lively five 
minutes and affords the teacher fine opportunity for 
detecting defective hearing among her pupils. The 
children may stand with their backs toward the teach- 
er while she taps ruler, bell, or triangle a certain num- 
ber of times. The children may tell or tap the number 
in return. She may make one long and several short 
beats, or beat different rhythms as three-four or four- 
four time. A child may be chosen to clap or step the 
time in response. Sounds from various parts of the 
room may be made by tapping on glass, iron, wood, 
brick, stone, and other materials. To develop the loca- 
tion of sound tap at different heights and in various 
directions. If there is a musical instrument in the 
room the tones of the scale may be used. A large part 
of this work is to lead the children to listen. 

At first, very crude attempts are accepted in draw- 
ing. The children may be encouraged to draw straight 
lines to represent grasses, trees, telephone poles, and 
street lamps. Stones or pebbles may be drawn. Any 
irregular form will do. The number idea may be used 
with the drawing. The child may be told to draw six 
trees in a row, or seven lamp posts along the street. 
Flowers, fruits, and vegetables may be outlined from 
seed catalogues and filled in with colored crayons. 

In paper cutting or tearing, wrapping paper, copy 
paper and even old newspapers may be used. Colored 
paper which may be obtained from any printing oflfice, 
is good material for advanced work. Cutting paper in 
straight lines, so as to make fringes and grasses, seems 



SEAT WORK 99 

easiest for unskilled hands. Cutting according to a 
crease or a fold is the next step. Paper cut into strips 
may be pasted to make fences and ladders. Circles 
may be cut by outlining around the end of a spool, and 
pasted in groups to represent apples, grapes, and other 
fruits. The frame of a show window may be made of 
strips of paper and filled with hats, suits, shoes, or fur- 
niture cut from catalogues or done by free-hand 
cutting. 

The days of the week may be illustrated by paper 
cutting and drawing, or by pictures selected from cata- 
logues. The Monday clothesline with its many gar- 
ments is of absorbing interest when each article must 
be cut and pasted. Ironing day with its clothes bars 
may be made of strips of paper and the clothes cut and 
folded and hung on the bars. Wednesday, or mending 
day, is equally interesting. Holes are cut in paper 
garments, and bits of paper to match are given the 
children from which to select the proper patch and 
correct color. To put it neatly where it is needed is a 
happy task. Thursday, which is visiting or playing 
day, is illustrated by the picturing of games or toys 
and people on the street. Friday, sweeping day, 
brings forth all sorts of brooms and brushes, and dust- 
ing caps.- Many pictures help out on baking day, or 
Saturday. For Sunday a picture of a church may be 
mounted and children will supply figures of men, wom- 
en, and chilaren wending their way toward the church 
door at the sound of the bell. 

Again, the work is naturally divided by the seasons 
into seat work for Fall, Winter, and Spring. In all 
seasons Nature is an unfailing source of help and each 
season offers a special variety of interest. People live, 
work, play, buy and sell in response to each season. 



100 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Many are the contributions which Fall brings us. 
Sorting is one of the first occupations for Autumn 
time. Leaves from one tree may be sorted as to size. 
A bunch of leaves from several different trees may be 
sorted as to species, color, form, edges, and veining. 
Nuts may be selected as to size, species, shells. Nuts 
may be placed with their shells, and acorns fitted into 
acorn cups. Bits of cloth may be sorted as to material, 
color, and texture. Pebbles and shells may be used in 
like manner. Grains and seeds may be classified and 
folded in papers or put in paper sacks made by the 
children and labeled by copying names of seeds and 
grains from the board. A Halloween book in the 
shape of a pumpkin is very interesting work for the 
children. But the Thanksgiving book is the crown of 
the work for Fall. 

Winter, with its Christmas season and Valentine's 
day, its ice, snowdrifts, winter sports, and starry- 
heavens, is rich in suggestions for this work. 

By the time Spring arrives with awakened life in 
the grass, buds, and blossoms, and work of man and 
beast, the children will have gained in skill, initiative, 
and originality so that they may contribute much to 
the planning of their own educative seat work. 

AN EDUCATIONAL SEAT WORK OUTFIT 
THAT HAS PROVED SUCCESSFUL 

By- Alice G. Campbell 

In many primary schools seat work is considered 
simply as a convenient means of keeping the pupils 
busy so that the teacher can give better attention to 
the recitation group. The teacher's need for some 
means of keeping forty mischievous little fellows em- 



SEAT WORK 101 

ployed while she gives individual pupils necessary help 
seems to justify almost any device that she can 
invent to keep them busy. But the thoughtful teacher, 
who wishes her pupils to be profitably occupied, will 
find that there is an abundance of busy work that also 
has a strong educational side, and is closely connected 
with the regular school subjects. The following is a 
brief description of a seat work outfit which I have 
tested out as a piece of experimentation in a first 
grade in a crowded city school. 

To meet the needs of practical work the devices 
must show variety enough to hold the interest through- 
out the term ; they must be simple enough for the child 
to use without assistance; the materials should be 
something that can be obtained without too much ef- 
fort and expense; the system should not require too 
much time for distributing and collecting ; the devices 
should be largely self-correcting, and above all full of 
appeal to the children and of genuine educational 
value. 

My room was too crowded for shelves or closets. 
The problem of storage and distribution was solved 
by having boxes made to fit the front seats with a slide 
cover opening from the front. Each box held one or 
more devices for each child in the row. The devices in 
all rows were different, so that every week or two the 
boxes could be moved along, and an entirely new pro- 
gram of seat work supplied. In this way the children 
have a great variety, and at the same time learn many 
profitable lessons. The pupils get the work and put it 
away themselves. At a signal they pass to the boxes, 
take a new piece of apparatus and start work with 
only a general oversight on the part of the teacher, 
and on signal again they return the outfits. 



102 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

A good many valuable devices can be purchased out- 
right from the regular kindergarten supply houses. 
Some of the most satisfactory seat v^ork devices, how- 
ever, are those the teacher makes for herself. An old- 
fashioned, but rather satisfactory word matching out- 
fit can be made from two old primers. Paste a page of 
one on a large stout envelope and a corresponding 
page from the other on a piece of cardboard. Cut up 
the cardboard into separate v/ords and keep the pieces 
inside the envelope. A collection of miscellaneous pic- 
tures from primers and other sources is useful. Print, 
or cut from calendars words, letters, and figures to 
make cards to be arranged in a certain order as letters 
of the alphabet; numbers in order; days of the week 
and months of the year. Make cards with such phrases 
as one house, two ladders, three beds, four chairs, five 
tents, and have the children illustrate with pegs. 
Provide box of splints and little balls of plastic clay 
for making houses, furniture, animals, and action fig- 
ures; boxes of assorted seeds as pumpkin, citron, and 
apple, for making designs. 

A rather clever self-correcting word or number 
card, adaptable to any grade, can be made by pasting a 
page of pictures with corresponding names, or prob- 
lems with corresponding answers, on one side of a 
sheet of cardboard, and a large, attractive picture on 
the other side. Cut out each answer, taking care to 
have all the pieces the same size and shape. The occu- 
pation consists in matching the tablets back into the 
right holes. When finished, the sheet is turned over 
and if all the answers are right the picture is perfect, 
but any mistake is evident from the picture. 

Before turning the outfit over to the children, it is 
advisable to take one or two periods to demonstrate 



SEAT WORK 103 

how the articles are to be used. After that most of the 
children can be trusted to follow the directions of the 
teacher, or apply their own ingenuity and think for 
themselves. 

PROFITABLE PRIMARY SEAT WORK 

By Madge L. Perrill 

What shall I give my children for seat work ? Isn't 
that the cry of primary teachers all over the land? 
Every article we read on the subject tells us that it 
must not be merely busy work. And we can't hear 
that too often. How easy it would be to just hand the 
little ones something to keep them busy while the 
other classes recite. 

But profitable seat work — where shall we look for 
that ? The first and best place to look is at the needs of 
the particular children in our care at that particular 
time. Do not rely entirely on ready-made seat work. 
Often it is good. Sometimes it is just what these partic- 
ular children need. If so, use it if you can get it. If 
not, see what they need and make some to fit. Work ? 
Yes, and lots of it; but well worth the effort. If at 
times it seems overwhelming, get other members of 
your family interested. You will be surprised to see 
what expert seat work makers they will become. And 
you'll realize the truth of the old saying, **Many hands 
make light work." 

The possibilities in seat work related to reading are 
limited only by the amount of time you have to prepare 
the work. The suggestions given here are suitable for 
the first and second grades. 

Give each child a box or an envelope containing well- 
known words and phrases (not letters) for building 



104 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

sentences. Do not put in too many at one time. The 
familiar words and phrases from one or, at most, two 
reading lessons at a time is enough. Do not have chil- 
dren make sentences like those on the board or in the 
book for any longer time than is necessary. They 
may need to copy until they get the sentence idea ; but 
lead them away from it as soon as possible. Encourage 
originality. The world has need of it. Suggest to the 
children that they make "funny" sentences and hear 
them chuckle as they build, "Little Miss Muff et sat on a 
wall," or "Humpty Dumpty was eating a pie." 

Think of all manner of things to test the children's 
ability to read to themselves understandingly. We read 
so much about the value of silent reading. Without 
doubt it is the most important subject in the lower 
grades. But how can we be sure in the first grade that 
the children really are understanding what they are 
supposed to be reading ? We all know how useless it is 
to hand a book to a first-grade child and tell him to 
read to himself, without testing him to see if he knows 
what he has read. 

Give each child a card on which are written a num- 
ber of sentences in each of which a word or phrase has 
been omitted. On the back of the card have an en- 
velope containing the missing words and phrases. The 
child cannot possibly fit correct words and phrases in 
blanks without reading the sentences understandingly. 

Give each child an envelope containing eight or ten 
interesting pictures and an equal number of slips of 
stiff paper on which are written or printed sentences 
relating to the pictures. The child reads a sentence, 
looks over the pictures, and decides to which one it be- 
longs. For instance one picture is a baby standing by 
an open gate. The sentence says, "Do not run away. 



SEAT WORK 105 

baby." The children take great delight in this kind of 
work about the middle of the first year. 

Give each child an envelope containing an equal 
number of questions and answers — ^the questions print- 
ed or written in red, the answers in black. The child 
silently reads a question, which concerns some story 
with which he is familiar and lays under it the correct 
answer. In the second half of the first year this may 
be made more difficult by cutting the answers into 
words and phrases so that they must be built by the 
child. It is best to have all sentences relating to one 
story in one envelope, each envelope being different. 

In all this work do not fail to number or letter each 
piece in the envelope to correspond to the number or 
letter on the envelope. It will save much time when 
some careless or nervous little hand drops a few pieces 
and does not find them until some time later. Do not 
fail, too, to carefully examine the work when finished. 
Silent reading is also brought into use in connection 
with seat work relating to number. As soon as a child 
recognizes the figures through twelve, there is no reas- 
on why he cannot be taught to use a ruler on which 
inches only are marked. After he has learned to man- 
age the ruler put such directions as these on the board : 

Draw a red line 7 inches long. 

Draw a green line 2 inches long, and so on. 
If there are any children who are not sure of the names 
of the colors, have on the board squares of the different 
colors with their names written beside them for ref- 
erence. 

Later add to the difficulty of this problem by 
writing : 

Draw 3 red lines 2 inches long. 

Draw 2 blue lines 3 inches long. 



106 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

As soon as children learn words, one, two, three, and 
so forth, substitute these for the figures. 

Another use of silent reading and also a way to let 
children show their originality is this. Give each child 
a paper (nine inches by twelve inches is a good size) 
and have him fold it twice. Thus by using both sides 
he will have eight spaces for drawing. Have eight sen- 
tences on the board for children to illustrate — sen- 
tences relating to some story that they have read, as : 
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. 
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. 
Red Hen was eating corn. 

Do not have all of your so-called seat work in the 
seats. Whenever possible let children practice writing 
something previously taught, at the blackboard. They 
soon learn that this is a privilege not to be abused. 

The differences in children's ability show up more 
clearly in seat work than in any other line. Work that 
will occupy one child fully twenty minutes is capably 
finished by another in ten, or less. Always have addi- 
tional work for the quicker child. In the second half of 
the first year or during the second year have a variety 
of books, in keeping with the children's ability, in a 
convenient place. Most children prefer having some 
interesting occupation to bothering their neighbors, 
if you give them a chance. 

I offer these few suggestions in the hope that they 
may meet some teacher's needs. But I say again, study 
your children, see what they need, and supply it. 
Everyone can who is willing to work. 



READING 



CREATING A DESIRE TO READ 

By Isabel Stemple 

In my first B grade we use books at the very begin- 
ning of our work in reading. Before giving out the 
primers we talk about friends that tell us stories. I 
say that I have a great many friends that tell me sto- 
ries and ask the children if anyone tells them stories. 
Of course they name fathers, mothers, grandmothers, 
grandfathers, big brothers, and sisters. Then I say, 
*'Yes, and I have many book-friends that tell me sto- 
ries, too. I wonder if you would like them to tell you 
stories. I am sure you would like the stories my book- 
friends can tell you." And as I pick up the primer I 
ask if they would like to see one of these friends. 

After the children have looked at the primer for a 
few minutes I say, "Before this book could tell me its 
beautiful stories I had to learn to read it." "But," 
some child says, "I cannot read." "Oh, but I am go- 
ing to show you how to read. Won't it be nice to take 
this book home some day and read a story to Mother 
and Father?" 

The next day we have a conversation about chick- 
ens. We discuss which of us have chickens at home, 
or have had them, how many have seen chickens, and 
what they are like. I tell the story, "The Little Red 
Hen," just as it is in the book. Then I have the chil- 



108 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

dren tell the story to me. We dramatize in unison and 
individually, such points as how the little red hen. 
looked when she found the seed, when she asked the 
questions, and when she said, "I will then," and how 
the pig, the cat, and the dog looked. Then as one row 
acts, the other children select those who look most like 
the animal represented. 

When the interest is thoroughly aroused I ask the 
children if they would like to read the story. We be- 
gin by finding where it says, "The little Red Hen 
found a seed." Then we look to see if it says the same 
thing somewhere else on the page, and then on the 
next page. We now find, "It was a wheat seed." 
This done I ask who can read the first page. Some vol- 
unteer, and read. Then others are willing to try. Be- 
fore the books are collected at the close of the period 
nearly all of the children have read the first page. 
And the children feel that they can read. 

At the next reading period the story is told again 
by the children. Then the children choose someone to 
read the part that was read the day before and another 
to act it out. In taking up the next part we find 
the sentence, "The pig said, 'Not I.' " We are now 
ready to read another page. In a few days, more than 
one page or section may be covered in one period, and 
before long the whole story will have been read. 

We are now ready to play the story so the children 
decide to read it over in order that they may play it 
well. While one child reads, the other children pay 
attention so as to be able to give any help that may be 
needed. We do not look for mistakes but for an op- 
portunity to help. When we are ready to dramatize 
the story, the children decide how it is to be played 
and who should play. I endeavor to have every child 



READING 109 

take some active part in every recitation. I try to 
have every child feel that he can do the thing we are 
trying to do, and do it well. 

Later, stories are told only in part, something being 
left for the children to find out for themselves. When 
a story is finished each child may take his book home 
and read it to someone there. 

When we are working on a story, part of our seat 
work deals with that story. The children build words 
and sentences, and draw pictures of the parts they 
hke best. When a child has finished his assigned 
work he may go to the reading table and get any book 
or other materials to be found there and look for word 
friends or read ; or he may choose some other form of 
seat work. Usually a book is chosen, as my children 
like to read. 

Every morning we have a short entertainment peri- 
od. During this time every child that has found some- 
thing that he can read may entertain the other chil- 
dren by reading it to them. This gives the children a 
strong incentive to master a selection. 

PRIMARY READING DEVICES 

By- R. C. Sharman 

The ordinary everyday words must be learned while 
the child is in the first grade. Believing that the use 
of devices is a great aid in teaching these words, I shall 
describe a few that I have used. 

The first day the little five- and six-year old children 
enter the schoolroom, I teach three words, which are 
names of different objects in the room. The three usu- 
ally selected are window, table, and chair. The most 
successful way I have found to teach these and similar 



110 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

object words such as door, desk, pencil, and so forth, is 
to write the word in large letters on a slip of paper and 
pin it to the particular object. I usually leave the slip 
there a day or two, the length of time depending en- 
tirely on the class. Then I remove each slip and write 
the words in colored crayon along the top of the black- 
board. It is well to change their position frequently, 
and add new words when the others are thoroughly 
learned. 

Often in teaching object words such as flower, leaf, 
tree, and grass, I draw the picture of the object on the 
board and write the word in large letters beside it. 
The words are left there until the children become 
familiar with them. Then again, I have the real ob- 
ject, when convenient, in teaching such words as nut, 
seed, fan, and apple. The apples or nuts may be di- 
vided among the children at recess, each child receiv- 
ing an equal share. 

The color words can be most easily learned by writ- 
ing each word in its own particular color. 

Action words such as run, hop, skip, or jump can 
best be taught by permitting the children to perform 
the act. Then have a blackboard drill on the words. 
Sometimes I write a number of familiar words on 
the board and after short individual reviews I have 
the children tell me what each word is as I erase it. 

Until the children have the aid of phonics, the 
words are difficult for them, and so I believe the pri- 
mary reading teacher's motto should be : Drill ! Drill ! 
Drill ! When the child begins to get his words by the 
use of phonics it will not be necessary for the teacher 
to use so many devices. 

Wise teachers often tell little stories which help the 
child to remember certain words. For instance. 



READING 111 

in teaching the word, look she might call attention to 
the two round letters and call them eyes. Numerous 
devices of this nature can be worked out. 

The flash cards have worked wonders for me. A 
teacher can make a set of them herself. Have a num- 
ber of small cards about five by seven inches, each one 
bearing a word the children have learned. Then flash 
a card before their eyes. It is amazing to see how 
easily the children recognize the words. 

Often I write a number of words on the board and 
have the children take turns in being teacher by asking 
other children to find such and such a word. Then 
again I give to each child a number of cards, each card 
bearing one familiar word. I keep a list of the words 
given out and then I begin the game by calling for a 
certain word. The one who has it places it on my desk. 
I keep calling until I have all the words. 

Playing games is natural for children and we play 
many of them in our school. One is the hide-and-seek 
game. We have apples, nuts, pencils, colored paper 
rings, leaves, and other objects whose names they have 
learned. All the children close their eyes while one 
member of the class hides the different articles. Then 
the children are asked to find them, first by spoken 
directions and then by written. This game teaches 
them such phrases as run and get, go and find, run and 
find, and so on. 

The children were very enthusiastic one day when 
they came to school and saw a number of lighted can- 
dles drawn on the board in colors, each candle having 
a word written above it. What fun the children had 
blowing out the candles ! 

I don't believe the children were ever so interested 
as they were the day we climbed a ladder to look into a 



112 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

bird's nest. I drew a ladder leaning up against a tree 
in which was a nest concealed by a large sheet of paper. 
On each round of the ladder was written a word. Each 
child who could climb the ladder by naming the words 
had the privilege of looking under the sheet of paper 
to see the nest with four pretty blue eggs in it. 

Then there is the sidewalk device. Draw a sidewalk 
leading to a schoolhouse. Fill the sidewalk with words 
and see who can get to school first. If the children 
falter, urge them on by telling them to hurry or they 
will be late. 

One day we found on the blackboard a cage full of 
little birds. We felt very sorry for them, so we soon 
set them all free by saying the words written on them. 

Every device which a teacher uses should be simple 
and suited to the child's experience. She should al- 
ways use her imagination freely so that the interest 
will not lag. 

FIRST-YEAR PHONICS AS A GAME 

By Frances C Duggar 

As soon as my beginners could sound the individual 
letters on the phonics cards, we began a game which 
lasted throughout the year — a phonics game. 

I asked the children if they liked to travel. They did. 

"Then," I told them, "we are going to start to-day 
on a long, long journey. It will take us many months 
to come to the end of it, for it is the journey to the sec- 
ond grade. You will have to be very brave and not be 
afraid to climb mountains and swim across rivers." 

"We are brave," they cried. "Let us start." 

So we started on the journey. The first thing we en- 
countered was a veiy long bridge. A line v/as drawn 



READING 113 

on the blackboard and over it the consonants were 
printed as follows : 

bcdfghjklmnprstvwxz. 
Below the bridge water was drawn. 

The first volunteer was given a pointer and allowed 
to start across the bridge. He sounded each letter as 
he came to it. If he came to a letter he could not 
sound, he fell off into the water below the bridge. 
With colored chalk he drew an outline of himself in 
the water. If he marched entirely across the bridge, 
he drew himself on the bank beyond, and the children 
clapped. In order that no time might be lost we made 
very simple drawings, using straight lines for the fig- 
ure and a circle for the head. 

If a child fell into the water I asked, "Are you 
brave enough to try again to-morrow?" The children 
were all brave. There was not a coward in the room. 
In a week all but three children could trip over the 
bridge very rapidly. 

Next we came to a steep hill. The children were de- 
lighted to try to climb it, which meant pronouncing 
correctly the following words, at, hat, cat, fat, hat, 
mat, nat, pat, sat, that. 

"If you are not careful you will climb to the very top 
and then slip down," I told them. The children climbed 
with a will. One of the best pupils tried first. With 
the pointer she climbed the hill, calling each word as 
she came to it. The sounding of the initial letter took 
place silently, so that the words were called as wholes. 
The child drew her picture at the top of the hill, while 
the next child was mounting. If he failed on any word 
he tumbled down and drew his picture at the bottom 
of the hill. All who failed to climb the first day tried 
again the second day. On the third day they tried 



114 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

again, while the rest of the class progressed to a new 
difficulty. Hill after hill was scaled. The board al- 
ways showed as much of the journey as possible al- 
though I did not allow the pupils to become too widely 
separated. 

The pupils in advance received a valuable review 
from listening to the pupils in the rear, while the rear 
pupils came to the new work well prepared from hear- 
ing it recited so many times. The order of the words 
on any one hill was changed from day to day so that 
the words could not be memorized as a list. 

I found no difficulty in remembering the children's 
places along the journey. The children themselves al- 
ways remembered. "All ready for the at hill," I 
called, and a dozen children rose and took turns try- 
ing. "Now for the children who have gone clear over 
to here," I said, indicating the an hill. Ten or fifteen 
more responded. "And now for the children who are 
ready to go farther," I said, and the advance guard 
rose while I arranged the ap words on the last hill. 
The first word in each group, that is, the key word, 
was likened to a pair of magic shoes or some other de- 
vice which made the hills easier for the children to 
climb. If necessary, we helped the child put on the 
magic shoes, but after that he had to climb alone. 

We did not always climb hills. We swam rivers. 
We stepped across brooks on slippery stones, we 
climbed down steep embankments, we sailed over 
stormy waters in a leaky boat, we rested on tiny is- 
lands, we climbed trees, we rode in airships. Some- 
times we skated over slippery ice or walked through 
deep snow. We rode on merry-go-rounds. We came 
down fire escapes and shoot-the-chutes. Never before 
had the children had so many exciting adventures. 



READING 115 

And as we went we learned phonics. The groups 
at, an, ap, ag, ack, arte, it, ig, ick, ite, ill, old, and so 
forth, were thoroughly mastered. The blends, sh, ch, 
th, wh, and so forth, were introduced one at a time and 
gradually mastered. We came finally to another 
bridge, high and narrow. It was aaeeiloouu. 

The children's enthusiasm was never allowed to 
abate. The drawing of the bridges, oceans, hills, and 
airships held them spellbound. The drawing of them- 
selves in these dangerous positions gave them thrills 
of delight. The appeal to be brave made even the 
most timid forget himself. 

Perhaps you would like to know what I did about 
the children who would have dragged hopelessly be- 
hind. They were allowed to try for several days, and 
then, if unable to accomplish the desired result, they 
went along the board with a pointer while the whole 
room sounded the words in concert. 

I appealed to the children who could have mastered 
a new group every day, and thus danced off into the 
distance, not to get too far ahead as the other children 
might need them. They often waited patiently for 
several days at the top of some dangerous hill or at the 
end of some difficult bridge. They were then allowed 
to draw themselves leaning down to help the other 
children arcoss. 

The children were anxious to be helpful. Often be- 
fore school I would see some bright child draw a hill 
and help a slower child to mount, pointing out with 
great patience the exact sound of each letter. 

Four days in every week we traveled. The fifth day 
was a review. Of course it was not called a review. 
The game idea must still continue. Miscellaneous 
words were put on the board, words taken from this 



116 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

group, and that group, following no regular plan, ex- 
cept to furnish as complete a review as possible. In 
our reviews we often pretended that we were stopping 
in a meadow to pick flowers. Each child must try to 
get a flower. One child went down the board with a 
pointer, calling upon the different members of the class 
to pronounce the words. If a child failed to get his 
flower, the next child picked it for him, and the child 
that missed was given another chance to pick a flower 
later. 

Sometimes the review words were dragons to be 
slain ; sometimes they were rocks to be picked up and 
thrown out of the path — anything that the children 
suggested. And as we traveled I continually called the 
children's attention to how far we had come, and what 
great things we had done. 

The children, to the very last one, entered into the 
spirit of the game, and their faces never failed to 
beam with joy when the "journey period" came 
ai-ound. Phonics was easily the favorite study of the 
first-grade pupils. 

HOW I TEACH READING IN THE 
FIRST GRADE 

By Kathryn Taylor 

The test of a reading method is the power it gives 
the child to read new matter. In olden times we had 
the A. B. C. method; next came the word method. 
This was a decided gain in progress, but this method 
still lacked the essentials of learning to read. 

Then came the sentence method. Vupils could read 
the sentence, but when new words ai^peared they were 
powerless to attack them. With the introduction of 



READING 117 

the study of phonics the child is enabled to attack new 
words. This renders him self-reliant, and secures dis- 
tinct articulation and correct enunciation. Without 
the use of phonics progress is slow. 

It has been found that a judicious blending of the 
best features of the word, sentence, and phonic meth- 
ods will produce the best results. The problem that 
confronts the young and inexperienced teachers is how 
to teach reading so that at the end of a few months 
children can read any primer or first reader suitable 
for the first grade. 

This may seem a difficult task, but it is an interest- 
ing and gratifying one and becomes in time delightful. 
In teaching reading to beginners, two different lines of 
work must be carefully observed. One is the expres- 
sion and development of thought, based upon the 
child's memory, imagination, and association of ideas. 
The other is the mechanics of reading which relate to 
the study of sounds by the use of phonics. 

The phonic method trains the ear to hear the sound 
correctly, the eye to recognize the written symbol, and 
the vocal organs to enunciate the sounds clearly. The 
work in phonics should predominate at first, but later 
should be subordinate. 

As a preliminary to the reading lesson a phonogram 
is taught. These sounds are given to little children 
by telling a story of something which represents 
the sound element. This holds the interest and atten- 
tion. In review all that is necessary to ask is, *'What 
does the cross cat say?" This question can be asked 
regarding the dog, the bell, the trolley, and so forth. 
The child is also asked to tell the story which is fixed 
firmly in his mind and associated with the above- 
mentioned sounds. 



118 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Perception cards are used for presenting the con- 
sonants, sight words, and blend words. Long and 
short sounds of vowels combined with consonants are 
excellent drill. 

As soon as the child is able to develop words a list is 
given of the familiar words as at, an, all, ill, and so 
forth. The child readily sees that, by prefixing a fa- 
miliar sound such as /, the following words may be 
formed as: fat, fan, fall, fill. 

I print, rather than write, the phonograms, words, 
and sentences on the board because a resemblance to 
the printed lessons in the book enables the children to 
develop more rapidly. Of course, as soon as possible 
I change to script. 

A list of sounds such as /, I, m, n, k, s, t, b, r, is 
printed across the board and below them are printed 
the phonograms ake, old, ing, end, and many others. 
The child delights in building words as cake, fold, sing, 
mend.. 

Pupils are asked to find new words in their lessons 
and show them to the teacher; and to read sentences 
from their book and tell what they have read. 

Many will think this a slow process, but the result 
of the drill work is the child's ability to read without 
hesitation, and to be able to get and express thought. 

The vocabulary presented to beginners should be 
carefully selected and graded. The words introduced 
should be repeated frequently enough to make it rea- 
sonably possible for the child to master them as he 
progresses in the book. In supplementary readers the 
vocabulary should compare favorably with the basic 
reader used. I generally take some standard first 
reader as a basic text. Have the pupils thoroughly 
master all the words in that book. By obtaining a 



READING 119 

good vocabulary of standard first-grade words the 
child is prepared to take up supplementary and other 
first readers. When new words appear the child 
knows how to master them. 

My classes read, on an average, twelve first or sup- 
plementary readers during the school year. I vary 
the reading by having the child who reads best stand 
in front of the class and read alternately a sentence or 
paragraph with the class or read all the lesson for the 
benefit of the class, by concert reading which gives 
the slow pupils a chance to catch up, by dramatization 
which brings out good expression, or by allowing pu- 
pils to select a lesson to read. 

For enunciation and voice modulation have sen- 
tences expressing fear, sorrow, anger, pity, joy, and 
other emotions. All drill work should be quick, full of 
interest and animation, allowing an opportunity for 
competition. In the presentation of the reading lesson 
pictures may be used and questions asked leading to 
oral reproduction. 

All these devices test the child's ability for getting 
thought from the printed page and make him familiar 
with the story so that he will be able to read or tell it 
to others. 

Primary reading charts made from pictures add 
materially to the interest of the class. The blending 
of sounds and words gives correct pronunciation. 
There is nothing in the world which so stirs the inter- 
est of the child in reading as the consciousness of 
power to master words by himself. Then the interest 
is accompanied by pleasure. 

The importance of phonics as a preparation for and 
aid to reading, especially in the first grade, can 
scarcely be overestimated. Supervisors everywhere 



120 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

maintain that the child with a thorough ground work 
in phonics progresses more rapidly and is a better and 
more independent reader than the one who depends 
upon memory or sight words alone. 



INTRODUCING DRAMATICS INTO 
READING 

By Frances J. Claxton 

Reading should be a real treat to child, teacher, and 
listener. If it fails to furnish genuine entertainment 
for all three, it fails of an important aim, a useful and 
delightful diversion. Yet unfortunately a great many 
primary reading lessons do fail dismally in this re- 
spect. The stilted, unnatural monotone, the stumbling 
pace, the lack of appreciation and the apparent dis- 
taste for the whole exercise make it anything but di- 
verting. And a test in reproduction usually demon- 
strates that the half-hearted, spiritless reader has not 
even got the thought. 

Where is the seat of the difficulty and how can it be 
overcome? It is not the dearth of interesting ideas in 
the books, for even the second-rate books, if read well, 
would hold the liveliest attention. It is not a lack of 
expressiveness on the part of the pupils, for these 
same children playing school in the home or on the 
playground will mimic the voice and gesture of teach- 
ers, associates, and others about them with surprising 
accuracy. Experience proves that it is not even lack 
of vocabulary, for a reader who is thoroughly inter- 
ested and awake will proceed in some fashion though 
greatly handicapped in this way. 

How can one explain the peculiar paralysis that 
seems to overcome pupils in the reading class? Sim- 



READING 121 

ilar behavior is not uncommon, of course, in other les- 
sons. There are pupils who offer only the shortest 
possible answers to questions in recitation, and yet are 
voluble enough among their fellows outside. There 
are some who can hardly speak above a whisper in the 
classroom, and yet are uncomfortably noisy on the 
street or about the house. In the home they may 
evince similar constraint when they are obliged to 
assume company manners or meet any embarrassing 
and unfamiliar situation before critical strangers. All 
animation seems to be suspended when they are even 
asked to shake hands and pass the time of day agree- 
ably. In general, primitive minds tend to stall in the 
face of any new, artificial formality to which they 
have not had time to grow accustomed. They cannot 
or dare not give the natural impulses free rein and 
they have not mastered the artificial. They have not 
learned to walk boldly on the thin ice of convention- 
ality. 

The cure, in so far as the reading is concerned, is an 
incentive sufficient to cause the child to forget himself 
for the time being, almost to drop out of existence, as 
it were, while he assumes the part of someone else. 
In other words, it is the introduction of dramatics in- 
to the reading. When the teacher has created a game 
atmosphere in the room, and the child is simply the 
mouthpiece of imaginary friends, Mr. Fox, Mr. Bear, 
and so on, it is easy to lose himself in the assumed 
character. He is Mr. Fox. What fun to talk for him,, 
using the words the printed page suggests. Once we 
can get him to playing that he is somebody else we can 
accomplish wonders in eliminating from his voice the 
flat, wooden tones that we so much dislike in our 
reading lessons. 



122 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

If you have no dramatic reader to start with, select 
the most conversational story you can find in the reg- 
ular reader; perhaps the story of "The Three Billy 
Goats GrufF," the goats that crossed the bridge and 
had their adventures v^^ith the Troll underneath. In- 
stead of having one child read straight ahead, assign 
the characters to different members of the class, let- 
ting each one read his part. "Tom, you may come and 
be the first Billy Goat Gruff. Jack may be the second. 
Who would like to be the Big Billy Goat Gruff that 
beat the wicked old Troll? Tony, how would you like 
to be the Troll, sitting under the bridge, with a nose as 
long as an ell, and eyes as big as saucers?" 

If the parts have been given out wisely this first 
time, you feel that a start has been made in raising the 
exercise from the level of a stilted reading lesson to 
the blissful heights of a game. One child can be given 
the part of "teller" and it is his business to read the 
descriptive portions of the tale. The other readers, 
book in hand, take places where the class can see them 
act, and, with as little coaching and interference from 
the teacher as possible, speak the lines for the different 
characters. 

An improvement in confidence, understanding, and 
enunciation is apparent at once. Everybody has a 
strong incentive to understand his part for he must 
try to act it out and say his lines so that others can 
understand the play. If he fails he is not merely fall- 
ing short of some grown-up's standard, he is spoiling 
the game for his mates. The children get away from 
the idea of reading, as such, and use it as a means to 
furnish themselves and the rest of the class with some 
fun. Fun is the very antithesis of a feeling of restric- 
tion and convention. The more fun you can mix with 



READING 123 

a reading lesson the further away you get from muffled 
voices and hesitating dehvery. 

When completely absorbed in the play pupils have 
helped to take care of clear tones themselves. The im- 
personators of the Billy Goats and the Troll have had 
no use for mumbling and indistinctness. Big Billy 
Goat has risen to considerable heights in roughly tell- 
ing the Troll what to do, and Little Billy Goat has 
thought to put a little scare into his voice. A certain 
amount of this power of expression will carry over 
into the other reading. It will be seen that every read- 
ing is in a sense dramatic. The reader is always act- 
ing as a mouthpiece for someone else. If the voice 
should fall flat sometime, just remind the pupil, "Did 
Mr. Fox use such an uninteresting voice when he was 
talking to us yesterday? Get him back into your 
voice again; you need his voice for this story, too." 

Dramatic reading not only brings about better ex- 
pression, but also better speed and comprehension. 
This can be verified by testing the pupils at the begin- 
ning and close of the term, that is, by timing the num- 
ber of words per minute and by asking a number of 
simple questions on the ideas in the text. A number 
of standard tests are available but it is also possible 
for the teacher to mxake her own. 

THE IMPORTANCE OF SILENT READING 

By~ Georgiana Boyington 

That reading is one of the most vital subjects, if not 
the most vital, in our public school curriculum is be- 
yond question. Upon the pupil's ability to read with 
comprehension, rests his power to gain knowledge in 
practically any study he may decide to pursue. 



124 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

That this subject has been poorly taught, particu- 
larly in the intermediate grades, is too apparent to 
need proof. But, I believe, a new era has dawned. We 
are beginning to comprehend more fully the aim of 
teaching reading, the difficulties in the pupil's way, 
and the kind of reading which will be most helpful to 
him. 

Our aim has changed materially during the last few 
years. Formerly the stress has been laid almost en- 
tirely upon pral reading. Much time and energy have 
been spent on having the pupils assume the proper 
standing position, hold the book correctly, look up from 
the page with sufficient frequency, and enunciate 
clearly. I do not wish to belittle any of these. They 
are all good, but experience has proven that they are 
not the best for which we should strive. 

Our chief aim should be to teach the child to read 
with understanding, thus giving him the best possible 
tool with which to work out the problems he will meet 
in his future studies, and, in fact, all through life. 

I believe our second aim should be to teach him to 
read with as much speed as possible. The idea ex- 
pressed in the phrase "slow and sure" does not prove 
true. It needs but little observation to convince one 
that speed and accuracy are usually copartners. 

How shall these aims be accomplished ? Let us make 
the methods suit the aims. We are trying to fit the pu- 
pil to pursue his study independently. Will he do this 
silently or orally? Ask yourself how much oral read- 
ing you have done during the last year as compared 
with your silent reading. You will readily see that the 
amount of silent reading done by the average person 
far exceeds the oral. We should then direct our ener- 
gies to silent reading. 



READING 125 

The Department of Education in my state advises 
that not more than two and, in many cases, only one 
day a week be given to oral readmg. The work of this 
one day should be carefully planned so as to accomplish 
as much as possible. 

A great deal of stimulus is added to the oral reading 
if the "audience situation" is furnished. Let different 
pupils read to the class from a book not in the hands 
of the others. This gives a feeling of responsibility for 
the correct rendering of the selection. 

To give as much practice as possible in this brief 
time, group reading is very helpful. Divide the pupils 
into small groups, locating them in different parts of 
the room. With a good reader for the leader of each 
group, have the children read orally, each taking his 
turn. The leader of each group should assist with 
difficult words. When he is unable to do so, he should 
call the teacher. 

Four days a week will thus be left for silent reading. 
This must be carefully directed or it will fail to accom- 
plish its purpose. The work naturally falls into two 
divisions, reading for speed and reading for compre- 
hension. 

The teacher will find means of varying the methods 
for increasing speed, but the following will serve as 
suggestions. To teach the pupils to grasp as much as 
possible in a certain length of time, have them find a 
given page, and, at a signal, read until a signal to stop 
is given. The number of lines read should then be 
counted. A record kept from week to week will show 
the increase that results from practice. In this ex- 
ercise the pupils should be required to reproduce what 
they have read lest we encourage speed at the expense 
of comprehension. 



126 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

The devices used in aiding the pupil to grasp the con- 
tent of a selection will vary with the material used. 
In some cases a group of direct questions will be found 
very helpful, the pupils reading silently and giving 
the answers orally. At other times the pupils may give 
an account of what they have read. 

To the many teachers who have tried these methods 
the results are conclusive evidence of their worth. To 
those who have not, an experiment of a few months 
duration will, I believe, be convincing. Contrary to ex- 
pectation the oral reading improves in spite of the fact 
that it is apparently neglected. As the pupils com- 
prehend more fully, oral expression comes as a natural 
sequence. 

The results in reading are gratifying, and the study 
of geography, history, and many other subjects re- 
ceives an impetus from the pupil's added power to 
glean facts and grasp instructions from the printed 
page. When this is accomplished, the teacher may 
feel she has taught the child to read, — and not before. 

"DOING ERRANDS" MAKES SILENT 
READING A JOY 

By Gertrude C. Warner 

I think, perhaps, that the single event in my own 
elementary school life which stands out in my mind 
in boldest relief, was the following trifling incident. 

One day, my eighth-grade teacher, observing that I 
had finished my work, told me to put on my things and 
mail a letter for her. I can remember enjoying all 
the sensations of playing hooky as I walked along the 
street in school time. Never was a letter more faith- 
fully mailed, I am sure. 



READING 127 

Recalling these pleasurable sensations, I decided to 
try a similar plan with my advanced first-grade class. 
These children had been in the habit of reading silent- 
ly sentences involving action, such as, "Go and get a 
green book.*" 

At the close of a silent-reading recitation, I wrote on 
the board : "Pauline and Dorothy, you may go out in 
the hall and put on your hats and coats. Then come 
and get the two letters on my chair. Then take them 
out and put them in the mail box." 

When some of the class had comprehended this re- 
quest, they asked if I "really-truly" meant it. When 
I said that I did, it caused a sensation. The children, 
apparently, could not believe their eyes, and I am 
afraid that the two children to whom the reading 
lesson fell were objects of jealousy. I expected that 
these two children would take their time in getting 
across the street, but they returned in record time, all 
out of breath. 

This scheme certainly has the element of attracting 
attention, at least, so I have used it frequently, but 
never enough to suit the demands of the children 
themselves. 

Here are some of the errands which I know from 
experience, give the children a peculiar delight: 

1. If you can read this, you may go into the kinder- 
garten room and write a story on the board. 

2. Will you go and look in my bag, Joseph ? If you 
can find a little box, you may bring it to me. 

3. You may put on your hat and coat and go up to 
my house. Ask my mother to give you my large red 
book. 

4. Please take this book up to the fifth grade, and 
give it to Miss Whiting, and tell her I sent it. 



128 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

5. Go out in the school yard and find some little 
stones for a well. Then make a little well in the sand 
table. 

6. Go to your seat and draw a tree. Color the tree 
green. Then draw a little house. Color the house red. 

7. Take a pencil, and a paper. Draw a man and a 
little boy. Draw the sun. 

8. I am going home now. I want my hat. Will you 
get it for me, Eunice? 

9. You may go and get a drink of water, Carolyn. 
10. Take the penny on my chair. Go over to the lit- 
tle store and buy a pencil. 

This kind of errand-reading would be still more 
practicable in the second grade, where directions 
could be more complicated. I have found, however, 
that any errand involving going out of the room, how- 
ever simple, is doubly entertaining to all children. 

A CONCRETE LESSON IN THE STUDY 
OF LITERATURE 

By Clara Fowler 

Of all the ways in which the teacher may influence 
the life of the child, there is probably none greater 
than that of creating in him a love for good reading. 
Reading is getting thoughts. Thoughts govern life. 
The teacher of reading may measure her success by 
the child's attitude toward the subject and by his re- 
sponse to her assignments. She should aim to make 
the reading period one of the happiest of the day be- 
cause the average child, when properly guided, de- 
lights in its approach. I believe it possible for any 
teacher who is conscientious, earnest, and industrious 
to teach reading. 



READING 129 

Personally I cannot follow the exact trail of any 
teacher whom I know, or of whom I have read, as to 
methods of teaching reading. I find that in preparing 
to teach this subject I have developed more initiative 
than in any other line of school work. There are, how- 
ever, some general principles that may govern all 
teachers of reading. 

First, the subject matter should come within the 
child's comprehension, should have some touches of 
childhood experience, and should call forth some effort, 
in order to be appreciated. The assignment must be 
made in such a manner as to create interest and to 
arouse curiosity. It is impossible for any teacher to 
make such an assignment without previously reading 
the selection and making definite plans. 

Second, the study period should be supervised by the 
teacher, if possible. The child, aided or unaided, 
should spend this time in an effort to satisfy the curi- 
osity aroused by the assignment. For recitation the 
selection should be considered as a whole, then in its 
separate phases. The teacher, by a few thoughtful 
questions, m.ay call forth the various opinions, and may 
gently lead the pupils into a comparison and contrast 
of their several ideas. She may tactfully restrain 
those who are too talkative, and encourage those who 
are timid. 

I have just finished the study of "Snow-Bound" with 
my sixth grade, and I shall endeavor to show you how 
we did it. As the children had read and enjoyed "The 
Barefoot Boy" they were already interested in Whit- 
tier and were anxious to knov/ more of him. When I 
explained that "Snow-Bound" really told of the ex- 
periences of the Whittiers, they began the work with 
eagerness. 



130 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

On a table about three feet wide and four feet long, 
we worked out the scenes described in "Snow-Bound." 
One little boy built the old farmhouse. He used card- 
board taken from a suit-box. He marked the door cas- 
ings with green water colors. He cut and fitted the 
chimney, then painted it red. The house, when fin- 
ished, was eighteen inches in length, with height and 
width in proportion. The girls brought posts and 
cords for the clothesline. The posts, when wrapped 
with cotton and sprinkled with artificial snow, really 
did closely resemble "tall and sheeted ghosts." Some- 
one built a tiny crib, another the old well-curb and 
sweep. The trees were represented by tacking tiny 
twigs to the table and covering them with cotton and 
snov/. Even the brush-pile, so like a "mound," was real 
to the children when a few twigs were piled together 
and covered with snow. 

We studied the poem during snowy weather. We 
saw the circle around the sun, and noted a "sadder 
light than waning moon." These signs foretold our 
snowstorms, as they had foretold Whittier's. We fol- 
lowed John Greenf eaf and Matthew to the stock-barn ; 
we heard the whinnying of the horses and the clashing 
of the horns of the cattle; we even heard the rooster 
quarreling because of his forced early perch. We com- 
pared the nightly chores of the Whittier boys with 
those of the boys in the class who are farmers' sons. 

One of the dullest boys pointed to the finished house 
and said, "I can just see the Whittiers 'round the fire- 
place crackin' nuts and drinking cider." Various other 
remarks proved to me that the pupils understood and 
enjoyed the poem. 

After we had spent the reading periods of two weeks 
on the study of this beautiful poem, we carried our 



READING 131 

"Snow-Bound" table to the stage of our auditorium 
where we gave a thirty-minute entertainment for the 
rest of the school and visitors. Different pupils im- 
personated the mother, father, Uncle Moses, each of 
the sisters, and each of the brothers ; and told the sto- 
ries as related by each of them in the poem. 

There are many selections that may be made just as 
delightful to children as "Snow-Bound," but this is a 
splendid one to arouse indifferent pupils to action, and 
to create a love for reading in all pupils. 

In my efforts to create a love for reading in my pu- 
pils, I plan frequently for conversational recitations in 
history, geography, or other subjects. For example, 
we are now studying the Eskimo. Several pupils have 
read Eskimo stories which they tell in class. Then we 
discuss them. This leads others to search for interest- 
ing thoughts along the same line. I study my pupils 
and strive to make each assignment mean something 
to each pupil. 

LEADING MY PUPILS TO READ 
GOOD BOOKS 

By Edith L. McGovern 

In September I faced the problem of how to make 
three complete sets of reading books furnish a 
year's reading material for a class of thirty fifth- 
grade pupils. I recalled a remark which someone had 
once made, suggesting that I experiment with an indi- 
vidual scheme of reading. Here was a possible solu- 
tion of the problem, and I set about gleaning ideas for 
a practical working-out of the plan. 

An exceptionally good library and a librarian who 
was most anxious to aid me in my efforts furnished in- 



132 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

spiration and invaluable help. However, I am quite 
confident that the plan can be used in rural schools 
which can avail themselves of circulating state libra- 
ries or in which there are school libraries. 

Each boy and girl is provided with a notebook for 
book reports. On the first page is copied this simple 
outline : 

Title of book. 

Name of author. 

Where is the scene laid ? 

Does the story deal with the past or the present? 

Who is your favorite character? Why? 

Describe a humorous incident related in the book. 

Each pupil chooses a book from the library or any 
available source. At first I prepared a suggestive list 
which the children might use as a guide in making 
their choice, but I did not insist that books should be 
selected from it. 

It was arranged at the library that I should be re- 
sponsible for all books used in my school. When a pu- 
pil borrows a book it is credited to me, and the libra- 
rian lightly pencils the child's name after my number 
on the pocket of the volume. These books are kept at 
the schoolhouse. My scheme has now been in opera- 
tion six months, and no book has been lost and no 
fine has been incurred for the abuse of a book. 

Each pupil reads his book as fast as he is able. Up- 
on completing it he writes a report of it, following the 
outline. After I have corrected this he copies it into 
his notebook. Then he is ready to begin a new book. 

The recording of a humorous incident is suggested in 
the outline because of a conversation I had with our li- 
brarian. She told me that she had been interested to 
find that children, in telling her about books which 



READING 133 

they had read, invariably related some humorous hap- 
pening which had apparently appealed to them. It 
seemed a good plan to give them an opportunity in 
their book reports to write something which they would 
especially enjoy writing. 

I, also, keep a notebook in which a page is devoted to 
each member of the grade. In this I record the date 
when each book is finished and the date when the cor- 
rected report is placed in the pupil's notebook. 

The number of books read varies of course with the 
ability of the reader. A few of the brightest pupils 
can read a book a week, while other pupils can cover 
only four or five books in the term. 

We read interesting stories of an uplifting and 
wholesome nature, being careful to avoid all that is 
worthless. Many of the books correlate with our ge- 
ography or history. In fact, the books in which are 
found references to things we have talked about in our 
school work, are especially in favor. The pupils like 
the history stories of American heroes, of colonial 
days, of early explorers, of the Old World, and of 
Greek heroes. Some of them especially enjoy animal 
and nature stories. Boys like to read of experiments 
and inventions, and, of course, both boys and girls are 
enthusiastic over school stories. 

Each morning I devote a twenty-minute period to 
this individual reading study. I go about among the 
desks, stopping now and then to say, "Read a little of 
the story to me." Occasionally I ask a question as to 
references to the first part of the story. 

Sometimes we devote a reading period entirely to 
recitation. Pupils give incidents from the stories 
which they are reading, or tell what they read about 
last, or answer two or three general questions on their 



134 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

books. They are very enthusiastic and eager to talk. 
The giving of oral reports is splendid drill in English. 

In starting the plan I had thought that it might 
prove complicated, that there would be possibilities of 
much confusion; but I found that the children ad- 
justed themselves very readily to it and that it ran 
smoothly from the outset. 

I do not drop the regular work from the basic reader 
and such supplementary sets of reading books as we 
have. An afternoon period of thirty minutes is de- 
voted to the study of an assigned lesson, when the dic- 
tionary is used and topics are prepared on the definite 
assignment. Both types of reading study are needed. 
Extra time for reading is gained because the pu- 
pils often read from the time they come into school 
until the gong sounds for the beginning of the session. 

Though my work has been with pupils of the fifth 
grade I feel sure that the same scheme could be used 
with equal success in the fourth or sixth grade. 

KNO^VING A FEW AUTHORS WELL 

By- Ida I. Hill 

Believing that children, as well as adults, derive 
more benefit from knowing a few authors well than 
from knowing a great many superficially, I begin liter- 
ature in the first grade by concentrating on one writer. 

As Robert Louis Stevenson, both in theme and in use 
of words — writing more as a child than for the child — 
seems to me to be more truly the children's poet than 
any other, I always choose him for my first-grade work. 

First, I tell in simple language the history of Stev- 
enson's life, dwelling on his sweet patience and cheer- 
fulness though handicapped by constant illness. I tell 



READING 135 

of his great love for children as evidenced by the beau- 
tiful poems he has written especially for them. Then 
I recite some of his poems, as "The Land of Counter- 
pane," "My Bed is a Boat," and "The Swing," and ask 
the children how many would like to learn some of 
them. They all would, of course, and so we begin. 
We start with the simplest one, "Happy Thought." 

"The world is so full of a number of things, 
I'm sure we should all be as happy as kings." 

We say it in concert a few times and then individually. 
We use this for two or three days, and after that, we 
average one poem a month. Occasionally, I review the 
author's life, about which the children love to talk. 

While we are learning the poems, we also learn to 
sing some of them which have been set to music. 

By the end of the school year, we have learned to re- 
cite ten of Stevenson's poems, and to sing a number of 
them, and we know a great deal about his life. 

If this practice — each grade dwelling on a certain 
author — ^were kept up for eight years, the high school 
would have an excellent foundation upon which to 
work, and those children who were denied any further 
schooling would be well fitted to enjoy the best in liter- 
ature. I also like to think of the uplift to the commun- 
ity that would result from following this plan. 

Once during the year my first grade has a school en- 
tertainment in which Robert Louis Stevenson is the 
prominent feature. The parents are invited, and they 
learn of Stevenson's life, and hear him sung and re- 
cited. First-grade children like to repeat at home 
what they learn at school ; and, in this way, parents be- 
come interested in the better literature. By following 
this system throughout the grades, the homes would be 



136 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

inflnenced toward better things, the children's interest 
in literature would be increased, and untold good would 
result to the community at large. 

INSTILLING A LOVE FOR THE BEST 
WRITINGS 

By May L. Treadwell 

The majority of teachers agree that the one aim of 
teaching hygiene is to teach health habits to children. 
The aim is not that the child may be able to repeat the 
health rules but that he must have the habits of clean- 
liness and right living. 

Most of us agree that the study of history does prac- 
tically no good if, through this study, the pupil is not 
made more patriotic. We think that the aim of arith- 
metic is to teach accuracy ; and so on through the list 
of school subjects. 

But when it comes to literature the ranks are di- 
vided. Some believe that the aim of the study of liter- 
ature is to make the pupil able to read aloud pleasing- 
ly; some think that the student must be able to quote 
the choice parts of the great classics ; some believe that 
the child must know how to distinguish between the 
different figures of speech that the author uses. 

It seem.s to me, however, that the only worth-while, 
workable aim of the study of reading or literature is 
that of instilling a love for the best writings. How 
many of the children we teach will become public read- 
ers? Probably less than one out of every hundred. 
How many will want to distinguish or even to consider 
a metaphor, simile, hyperbole, or any of the figures of 
speech? I hesitate to say one out of every thousand 
for it seems too many. But will not all children spend 



READING 137 

a part of their time in reading? So, if the teacher can 
implant a fondness for the great writers and poets in 
the hearts of her pupils, she is giving them a gift more 
precious than "frankincense and myrrh" — ^the golden 
privilege of communing with the great of all ages. 
There is no greater earthly gift. 

Every boy and girl, even every untrained boy and 
girl, likes to read some kind of literature. Certainly 
all children do not read the best literature. Many have 
read and liked the books and stories that we teachers 
detest. 

Thus, after the child has learned to read, the prob- 
lem is not to teach him to like to read for he already 
likes to read, but rather to teach him to like the best 
and to be able to discriminate between the bad and the 
good. 

After trying many experiments with various meth- 
ods and devices, I have decided that the following 
plan tends to make the child like the best literature. 

I. Read wholes rather than parts. 

Instead of studying textbooks that contain excerpts 
from great stories and poems, the whole story and 
the whole poem should be studied. 

The plan that I have followed to procure these clas- 
sics is very simple. At the beginning of each term 
every pupil is asked to bring a small sum of money 
(never more than twenty-five cents) instead of spend- 
ing much more than that amount on a reading text- 
book. With this money sets of paper-bound classics 
are purchased. 

The arguments for reading the entire story and the 
entire poem have been advanced so many times by our 
great educators that I shall not try to give them here. 
But I do wish to emphasize the truth that a teacher 



138 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

cannot instill a love for good reading by administering 
little tastes and daubs of the stories from the great 
storehouse of literature. The child must read the 
story or the poem in its entirety in order to appreciate 
and to love it. 

II. Make the presentation of the classic interesting. 
Assuming the material with which to work is at 

hand, we have the next important step, the presenta- 
tion of the classic. Some stories like The Gold Bug, 
The King of the Golden River, The Arabian Nights, 
and many others are so intensely interesting from the 
start that very little presentation is needed. The 
reading is usually done silently unless the classic hap- 
pens to be an unusually musical poem or a delightful 
description that should be both seen and heard. 

On the other hand some stories need elaborate prep- 
aration. When, however, even with elaborate prepa- 
ration, the story does not interest the majority of the 
pupils it should be laid aside, for they are probably not 
old enough to appreciate it. The children should not 
be fed one distasteful morsel when the aim is to make 
them love the best literature. Often after reading a 
good story the pupils are anxious to read another story 
by the same author. 

III. Review the classic in a different form. 

A discussion follows the reading of the story by the 
pupils. Soon after this discussion we have a review 
which is so arranged that it is not recognized as such. 
The Rip Van Winkle review is a written "Soliloquy of 
Rip Van Winkle on Awakening from His Long Sleep." 
The reading of The Gold Bug is followed by the mak- 
ing of original cryptographs by the pupils and a writ- 
ten character sketch of Legrand. 



READING 139 

IV. Give credit for outside reading. 

Credit is given the pupils for reading certain ad- 
ditional books. A list of these books is furnished each 
child. The library cooperates by sending any number 
of these books to the school where I lend them directly 
to the pupils. In preparing the list of books to be read 
the aim is to give the popular good books. A book is 
never put on the list merely because the author is a 
good writer. It is too easy to discourage the child by 
lending him a book that is beyond his comprehension. 
It has been my experience that instead of having to 
persuade the children to read these good books, we 
have had to restrain them and restrict them to a cer- 
tain number a month, as we found that they were 
spending too much of their time in reading. 

V. Correlate reading with good motion pictures. 
Some moving pictures stimulate a taste for good 

literature. In our city this year we have had good 
productions of The Three Musketeers, Julius Caesar, 
Rip Van Winkle, Treasure Island, and others. Thus 
the children want to read the books upon which the 
pictures are based. When it is possible, we read these 
stories before the picture is shown. 

The work on this problem of persuading pupils to 
read better books is after all quite easy. If the child 
has a sympathetic adviser he is eager to follow every 
suggestion. 



HANDWRITING 



HANDWRITING DEFECTS OVERCOME 
BY A GREAT INCENTIVE 

By- Blanche B. Mcl^'arland 

I had always had trouble with the teaching of hand- 
writing. Perhaps my own incorrect position and ir- 
regular movement were partly responsible for this. 
Perhaps the fact that I had been taught the Spence- 
rian method, then, when I began teaching, found it 
necessary to use the vertical system, later changing 
back to a semi-slant, and eventually being called upon 
to learn and teach the Palmer method may have had 
something to do with the foregoing; it is more likely, 
however, that I had never learned any one system well, 
and had acquired habits of carelessness with the years.' 

For several years I had exchanged with some other 
teacher, teaching music in her grade while she taught 
handwriting in my grade. However, the policy of the 
school was against departmental work in these grades. 
I determined that this session I would ask no conces- 
sions, but make a determined effort to overcome my 
inefficiency. 

Doubtless if I had known more about the grade I 
was to have I would have hesitated to make the at- 
tempt. The children made no pretense of maintaining 
correct position and movement except during hand- 
writing period. Papers passed in on the various sub- 



HANDWRITING 141 

jects were almost illegible. It was impossible to dis- 
tinguish between the i's and e's, a's and o's, u's and n's. 
Length above line and below was disregarded, as was 
spacing ; to distinguish between capitals and small let- 
ters was frequently impossible ; there was every possi- 
ble degree of slant. Naturally along with such writing 
there were smears, blots, and erasures. 

To create a real interest in writing, to awaken and 
encourage a sense of pride in accomplishment, and 
thus to stimulate effort was evidently my task. But 
how to accomplish this was a problem that seemed 
beyond my power of solution. I was carefully studying 
the Palmer manual, painstakingly practicing the drills 
myself ; and as my own writing, with all that implies, 
improved I grew more interested in the efforts of my 
class, more determined that they should accomplish 
results. It was in this spirit that I determined to try 
to use with them the same measures I used with my- 
self. To succeed in this I must do the following : 

1. Make them conscious of their inefficiency in 
writing. 

2. Put before them correct standards. 

3. Lead them to see their own individual defects. 

4. Show them how to overcome these defects. 

5. Build up class and individual pride to the point 
that sustained effort will be secured. 

The point of attack seemed drastic, but it proved 
effective. We had just finished several of a series of 
projects in home geography, covering the industries 
of our community. The booklets were to be on exhi- 
bition at a Patrons' Day that we were soon to have, 
and were later to form a large part of our exhibit at 
our State Fair. The class had thrown itself whole- 
heartedly into the working out of these projects and 



142 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

had done exceptionally well. Every phase of the result 
except the handwriting would have made any class 
and teacher proud. It was not without misgivings 
that I decided to bar these booklets from the exhibit. 

However, I did not tell the class of my decision. In- 
stead, I borrowed a number of booklets on various 
subjects from the grade above and the grade below my 
own. The next morning when the class entered the 
room they were struck by the amazing array of book- 
lets. A light wire had been run across the front and 
back of the room. On this wire were placed in regular 
repeating series a booklet from the grade above, a 
booklet from our own grade, a booklet from the grade 
below; all were opened to some page in the booklet, 
thus disclosing the handwriting instead of merely 
showing the good-looking covers. 

The class was immediately struck with the compari- 
son. For a while I refused to let the matter be dis- 
cussed, as child after child wished. Then a period was 
deliberately taken and free speech encouraged. Of 
course there were all kinds of efforts made to evade or 
excuse this all too evident shortcoming, but finally we 
settled down to a sober discussion of defects and rem- 
edy. A handwriting scale had also been hung in the 
room, so from a general comparison of our handwrit- 
ing with that of the other grades we came to a specific 
comparison with the scale. Finally the grade was 
brought to see that no matter what excellent material 
their booklets contained the average person would pass 
them by without interest and with only unfavorable 
comment as to the handwriting. Hence it was agreed 
to leave them out of the exhibit. 

Then came the cheering thought : Though we could 
not hope to improve enough to rewrite the booklets for 



HANDWRITING 143 

Patrons' Day, we still had two months in which to im- 
prove before we had to send in our Fair exhibit. 

The handwriting scale became the center of interest. 
No handwriting lesson was complete without a compar- 
ative study. Weekly tests were given when speed and 
quality were carefully graded, a record being kept of 
each pupil's achievement. 

But we needed an even more detailed study of our 
writing defects. So I wrote on the board the following : 

Analysis of Defects in Writing 

1. Too much slant 

a) Writing arm too near body. 

b) Thumb too stiff. 

c) Fingers too far from point of pen. 

d) Paper in wrong position. 

e) Stroke in wrong direction. 

2. Writing too straight 

a) Arm too far from body. 

b) Fingers too near point of pen. 

c) Index finger alone guiding pen. 

d) Paper in wrong position. 

3. Writing too heavy 

a) Index finger pressing too hard. 

b) Using wrong pen. 

c) Penholder too small in diameter. 

4. Writing too light 

a) Penholder held too obliquely or too straight. 

b) Eyelet of pen turned. 

c) Penholder too large in diameter. 

5. Writing too angular 

a) Thumb too stiff. 

b) Penholder held too lightly. 

c) Movement too slow. 



144 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

6. Writing too irregular 

a) Lack of freedom of movement. 

b) Movement of hand too slow. 

c) Pen gripping. 

7. Spacing too wide 

a) Pen progresses too fast to right. 

b) Too much lateral movement. 

Very carefully every child was led to determine his 
own defects, and to note the causes thereof. The class 
was then divided into groups, according to their needs. 
A captain was chosen whose duty was to check up 
the work of each member of his group. Specific drills 
were given for the correcting of specific defects. 

Day after day, as one error was corrected, one weak- 
ness overcome, the writing was subjected to careful 
scrutiny. An improvement chart was worked out and 
kept by the captains of the groups, every piece of writ- 
ten work being included in the study. It soon became 
unnecessary to say anything about neatness, and care 
as to arrangement on the page. Increasing pride in 
handwriting led to increasing neatness in every detail. 

The class won their objective, for not just some but 
every booklet was copied, and passed even their ex- 
acting demands. 

Futhermore, that spring I promoted a class of 
whose handwriting I was especially proud. The next 
fall standardized tests were introduced into our 
schools, and I was not surprised that that class ranked 
above the standard. Perhaps some other teachers who 
have struggled with bad handwriting will realize what 
sweet music it was to my ears to hear, time and again, 
from the teacher to whom my pupils went that it was a 
real joy to have a class that handed in such neat, beau- 
tifully-written papers and for whom handwriting was 



HANDWRITING 145 

an analytic study carried forward with keenness and 
zest. 

It may not be out of order to add that I have never 
since wanted anyone to teach my handwriting classes. 

EVERY WRITTEN LESSON SHOULD BE 
A WRITING LESSON 

By Alice S. Corneveaux 

The ability to write legibly, rapidly, and easily is a 
priceless timesaver for both pupils and teachers. 
Good writing is also an accomplishment and a valuable 
commercial asset. Realization of its importance is a 
prime requisite of a successful teacher. 

With the opening of the school year I begin at once 
some preparatory drills without pens. The children 
should take an erect, easy position, with backs 
straight, heads up, feet flat on the floor, and both 
arms on the desk. 

For muscular relaxation open and close the fingers, 
raise and drop the arms. Rigidity must be overcome. 
Let the arms lie on the desk and with the right hand 
make a fist. Play it is a mud turtle. Make it go out 
and in the shell (the sleeve) ; out, in, out, in, faster, 
faster — one, two, one, two. 

Now play the hand is a rake, the fingers the teeth. 
Rake the garden; rake it faster — one, two, one, two. 
Now two teeth have been broken on a big stone (the 
first and second fingers are lifted) , and we must rake 
fast with the other two. Now break up the lumps, go 
round and round — one, two, one, two. 

Play that the hand and wrist are a bridge. They 
must be kept up from the desk or the water cannot 
flow under it. There are just two points of contact. 



146 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

They are the muscle of the forearm, just in front of 
the elbow, and the tips of the third and fourth fingers, 
which should slide over the paper. The ingenious 
teacher can find many devices suited to the particular 
children with whom she is working. 

I use these exercises with second- and third-grade 
children for a week or two before they are allowed 
their pens. When they are given their pens they hold 
them upside down at first in order to learn the correct 
position. Since this is largely a review of first-grade 
work the amount of time spent on it must be determin- 
ed by the needs of the class. This year my children 
spent their writing periods for the greater part of the 
first six weeks at the board. Their pen and ink work 
consisted largely of one and two space drills, using the 
oval and push and pull exercises, and letters and words 
with which they were entirely familiar. Second-grade 
children should get their forms at the board where fin- 
ger movement is impossible. If they are uncertain 
about forms, hesitation is inevitable and speed and 
movement are sure to suffer. 

Children must be taught that every written lesson 
is a writing lesson. There is little use in insisting on 
correct position and movement for fifteen minutes, and 
then utterly disregarding them for the remainder of 
the day. There is little use in insisting on correct form 
for fifteen minutes, and then placing before the class 
word drills, spelling, and sight reading exercises 
written in disregard of standard forms. If teachers 
wish their pupils to use good form they must bear in 
mind that in this, as in all other teaching, the psycho- 
logical laws of habit formation cannot be disregarded. 
The first law is that the attention be focalized upon 
the habit to be acquired. The second is that the first 



HANDWRITING 147 

step be followed by attentive repetition. And the 
third states that no exception must be permitted until 
the operation becomes a habit. The "no exception" 
law may seem hard at first, and a teacher may feel 
that she cannot take time for criticism of writing in 
spelling and language periods; but she will find that 
such efforts are well rewarded later by the saving of 
time. The regular writing lesson may occasionally 
be omitted in order that writing may be criticized in 
other periods. 

When the children are familiar with the correct let- 
ter forms, they are ready to apply what they have 
learned in movement drills to the writing of words and 
sentences. Here again we must have repetition and 
peraiit no exception. It is a serious mistake for a 
teacher to mark a spelling paper one hundred per cent 
when a child has written the word bell with a b that 
cannot be distinguished from an /, and an e and two I's 
exactly alike. 

There are many little devices that can be used to 
interest the children, fix important facts, and relieve 
the work from monotony, I tell them that b sleeps 
upstairs — never below the line. He likes fresh air 
and always has his window open while / goes below 
the line and shuts his window tight — that's why he's 
so long and skinny. The letters, p, g, and y, are pussy 
cats sitting on the fence and letting their tails hang 
down. They must, of course, sit on the fence. No cat 
could remain poised on the tip of his tail. Some let- 
ters, like m, begin with Grandpa's cane. It must be 
straight and strong or Grandpa may fall. A few 
strokes will convert e into a delightful little chicken. 
Even older children get profit as well as entertainment 
from these devices. 



148 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Speed is of very great importance, and writing to 
music is one of the best ways of gaining uniformity. 
It will stimulate the phlegmatic, and steady the quick, 
nervous child whose movements are jerky and uncon- 
trolled. If no phonograph is available a song with 
strong rhythm may be used, or the conversational 
count is always good: "One, two, three, four; heads 
up, feet flat ; nine, ten. One, two ; on your nails ; three, 
four; make them round, round, round ; nine, ten. One, 
two; keep time, back straight, two space; nine, ten." 
The admonition may be accompanied by a light touch 
on the shoulder of the child in need of it. 

There will, of course, always be laggards. They 
may be grouped and closely supervised by the teacher 
or by assistants chosen from among the most profi- 
cient children. The little supervisors enjoy this work 
and consider it a great honor to be chosen. The lag- 
gards should be made to feel that they are not in dis- 
grace but merely in need of special help, and that they 
are expected to outgrow this need with all possible 
speed. 

I have found that a bulletin board on which are 
mounted good specimens from among the daily papers 
is a strong incentive to good work. Some children must 
be more strongly motivated than others. Eriendly 
rivalry will stimulate interest and bring forth in- 
creased effort. 

The following ladder device has given gratifying re- 
sults. A chmbing child is drawn with colored crayons, 
or cut from a printed picture and fastened to the bot- 
tom of a pictured ladder with a thumb tack. Name her 
by all means. One name that we chose was "Mary Go- 
up." There must be a ladder and a climber for each 
group of contestants. If a group does well its paper 



HANDWRITING 149 

representative may go up a step ; if poorly, she remains 
in place or even steps down. The game is to see which 
will first reach the top of the ladder. 

Just now we are having a capital-letter race. The 
class is divided into five teams, each with a captain 
chosen by the children. The name of each captain ap- 
pears on a score card and there is ample space for 
scoring. Team I runs to the board. Each child writes 
the chosen capital five times, erases all but the best, 
marks it with the figure I, and runs to his seat. This 
procedure is repeated by each team in turn until each 
child in the room has his best letter on the board. 
Then the best one of all is chosen, and the captain of 
the team of which the writer is a member places a cross 
in his space on the score card. 

When all the capitals have been studied and used in 
the race, the team that has won the most crosses will 
be victorious. It is not best to have the races every 
day but to alternate these lessons with others or to 
have a snappy race at the close of an especially good 
lesson of another kind. Interest is keener if the races 
are viewed as a treat. 

After the middle of the school year, the children will 
be found differing more or less widely in ability. The 
capable child's interest is likely to be killed by repeti- 
tion that both he and the teacher know is needless. 
Now several pages in the manual may be assigned or 
numbered selections may be placed upon the board 
for those who can complete the specified amount of 
work in less than the average time. As the teacher 
goes from seat to seat for individual instruction she 
may lightly tap the shoulder of the successful writer 
who may write the next number. In this way all are 
kept profitably busy. 



150 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

HANDWRITING MOTIVATED BY 
INTEREST 

By Marion P. Stevens 

In the school described, writing was not begun until 
the second half of the first year. For the first few les- 
sons, single letters were carefully studied, one at a 
time, beginning with a, m, n, d, r, s, t, and others 
which do not go below the line. Both the sound and 
the name of the letters were used interchangeably. 
In studying a letter the children watched the teacher 
write it several times, and then they discussed its 
form, place of beginning, and so on. It was then 
erased and written by the children. Most of the work 
was done on paper because of insufficient blackboard 
space. The paper used was double-lined, the space 
for a small letter being a half inch, for a capital letter 
one inch. 

Each day a review was given of letters already 
known. These were written on the blackboard by the 
teacher, one at a time, and copied by the children 
on paper. A star was given for a correct line, and 
mistakes pointed out to individuals. Then the new 
letter or letters were introduced and practiced. 

This very formal type of work was exceedingly in- 
teresting to the children, who previously had had a 
great deal of free work. It seemed to the teacher 
that they felt very importantly grown-up during the 
short drill periods. The joy of really beginning the 
writing, to which they had been eagerly looking for- 
ward, motivated the abstract drill and brought great 
satisfaction. 

By the time, however, that the more common letters 
of the alphabet had been taught, and a few simple 



HANDWRITING 151 

combinations — such as am, one, see, tree, me — ^had 
been made, it seemed time for something new. The 
teacher therefore suggested that the children might 
like to make writing books, if they could decide 
what sort of writing should go into them. A short 
class meeting was held, and they decided to write the 
names of the colors, and make a patch of each color be- 
side each word. After examining crayon boxes, the 
following eleven colors were decided to be possible: 
red, pink (light red), orange, yellow, green, blue, pur- 
ple, black, brown, gray (lead pencil), white (damp 
chalk) . 

Half sheets of writing paper were cut the long way, 
making three lines on a page. The class figured out 
that eleven colors would require four sheets, the last 
page having one vacant line. Two heavy paper covers 
were cut for each child, and the books were put to- 
gether with brass fasteners. A few children made a 
design on their color books, a few printed the name of 
the book, but the larger number left the cover as it 
was. 

The name of each color was written several times on 
one line, and a square of color made at the end of the 
line. The children copied the words from the black- 
board after watching the teacher make them and after 
discussing each letter and noting the difficult joinings. 
It was pointed out and insisted upon that an entire 
word should be written without lifting the pencil. 

The words were not erased, as the letters had been, 
but left for the children to look at while they wrote, 
since they had not had enough practice to be able to 
carry both form and spelling in their minds. Certain 
advanced pupils were encouraged however to write 
without looking at the copy. The children exercised 



152 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

great care in making their books, and seemed proud 
of the results. 

Next, a different sort of book was made. The sheets 
of writing paper were folded once, the cover folded 
once, and the books sewed together at the crease with 
silkateen. This made a page of seven or eight lines, 
more like a spelling book. 

This book was to be filled with the names of ani- 
mals. The teacher suggested grouping wild animals, 
Eskimo animals, farm animals, water animals, and so 
on. The children decided to do this. It made them 
more thoughtful as they decided what animal to write 
next, and it gave them a rough classification of the ani- 
mal world. Certain long names, such as hippopota- 
mus, the teacher refused to write, explaining that the 
class was not yet ready for words containing so many 
letters. In the animal book, each word was written but 
once. 

Some child suggested writing rhyming words for 
the third book, so as to give practice on difficult let- 
ters. Sewed books were made, and one list of words 
written on each page: king, ring, wing, sing — hack, 
rack, tack, track — top, hop, stop, pop, shop. For this 
abstract work the children asked to have stars for a 
perfect page. It seemed that they found rhyming words 
less interesting than color words or names of animals. 
This is corroborated by the known fact that children's 
interest in rhyming is not strong at six or seven — an 
idea which might perhaps influence some teachers to 
put less emphasis on the teaching of rhyming words 
during phonetic drill. 

"Things in the Room" — such as clock, sand, blocks, 
hook, chair, table — was the next book made. Many of 
these books were lettered or decorated, several discus- 



HANDWRITING 153 

sions having been held previously, at which time book 
covers made by various children were shown and com- 
mented upon. The points made by the teacher were : 

(1) filling the space well 

(2) balance 

(3) good lettering 

(4) appropriate cover designs (as a rainbow for 
a color book, a cat for an animal book) 

(5) contrasting colors so that cover design would 
show plainly 

(6) neat-looking books 

The last book of the term was to be filled with 
"Spring Poems." The children were asked whether 
they were sure that they knew enough short spring 
poems to fill such a book, before beginning. With this 
book the work in writing came to an end. Almost all 
of the children could write any simple word, including 
their names, and knew many of the capitals. The time 
spent was about twenty minutes three times a week, 
though some children were given individual help at 
other times. 

Whenever a new letter was needed while making 
the books, the children were carefully shown how to 
"write it. Difficult combinations like wa, bu, of, og 
were noted many times as they reappeared. 

The method used was not extended drill, but focal- 
ization upon one point at a time, and constant effort 
"to allow no bad habits to be formed. Interest and con- 
tent were considered of first importance, but correct 
habits, such as pencil holding, posture, spacing, and 
correct formation of letters, were given a major place. 

The results seemed to show that handwriting can 
be taught from the interest side, without sacrificing 
the essentials of form and technique. 



154 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

A SUCCESSFUL METHOD OF TEACHING 
HANDWRITING 

By" Elsie N. Dodson 

Handwriting is a practical art that must be used 
daily. To serve this everyday need of common life, 
a legible, fluent handwriting must be taught in our 
schools. 

I have been a teacher for years in the public schools 
of a large city — having had experience in all grades, 
particularly, the first four grades. By the following 
methods I have never failed to get every child inter- 
ested in putting forth his very best effort. 

First : I am enthusiastic. They become so. 

Second: I write with them. Children, as well as 
adults, would rather work with others than for them. 

Third : I use the blackboard often and permit them 
to do so. The freedom the blackboard gives pleases 
the child. By means of the board, too, any new letter 
form or word may be seen easily by all. Each has a 
chance to try it. All work is criticized and a friendly 
rivalry brought about. The children soon show a re- 
markable ability to criticize their own as well as 
others' work, and it is no uncommon thing for a mon- 
itor to return from another room and criticize the 
writing he saw while in there. In the free use of the 
blackboard, time is well spent because good blackboard 
work insures good seat work later. True, it must be 
done slowly at first, but when forms can be made auto- 
matically, speed takes care of itself. 

Fourth: I see that all work is done carefully. 
Even a short period of careless practice will do away 
with adjustments of muscles gained during many pe- 
riods of careful practice. For this reason I never 



HANDWRITING 155 

assign such disciplinary sentences as "I must not talk" 
to be written a certain number of times because such 
work is always done carelessly. I never allow myself 
to do any careless writing before them. 

Fifth: I display the best work. As a special in- 
centive I offer writing certificates to those making sat- 
isfactory improvement. These are printed on paper 
about five by six inches, and say: (Name of child) is 
a member of the model Handwriting Class and this 
certificate is awarded for satisfactory improvement in 
handwriting, and for good habits in general writing. 

The cards are inexpensive and have a neat border 
which appeals to the child. The parents are glad to 
provide frame and glass, and the child has something 
he values very highly, as well as the ability to write 
well — a great asset. 

Habits of great value have been taught, among 
which may be mentioned neatness, orderly arrange- 
ment of work, care in attending to details, and self-re- 
liance. Also health has been promoted by proper pos- 
ture and movement. 



HANDWRITING MADE A LIVE SUBJECT 
BY A TEACHER'S ENTHUSIASM 

By" C. L. Carroll 

I had taught handwriting for a number of years, 
with what I now consider but slight success. I gave 
the subject a place on the daily program, but the time 
devoted to the lesson was gone through as though the 
subject was merely a side issue. 

While attending a summer session at normal school 
I came in contact, by accident, with the handwriting 
instructor. He was an excellent teacher. He was full 



156 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

of enthusiasm and belief in his line, like a salesman 
selling his idea. He explained to me the method 
taught in the normal and training school, together with 
the various awards. I became a student of handwrit- 
ing. I secured the first two av/ards without difficulty. 
For the third, which was the Teacher's Certificate, I 
found it necessary to try three times, I value the cer- 
tificate all the more because I had to work for it. 

Needless to say I caught a glimpse of handwriting 
from a new angle. My being a student kindled within 
me a spirit of enthusiasm that carried over to my pu- 
pils. I systematized my recitation work so that in a 
short time a good percentage of my pupils showed 
evidence of work accomplished in handwriting. Those 
who were successful in making the first step started 
for the second ; the unsuccessful ones made a study of 
the criticisms on their work and started a second time 
on the first step. I would sometimes tell the unfortu- 
nates of my own experience. 

I gave a short speed test at the opening of the se- 
mester. The object of this test in addition to speed 
was to determine letter formation. For the test I 
copied on the board one stanza of a familiar poem and 
had the children copy it on a piece of paper. We then 
read it over together to make certain that all under- 
stood it. Everyone was then asked to get a clean 
sheet of paper and to write his name, grade, and the 
date at the top of the page. At a given signal all wrote, 
stopping at a signal at the end of one minute. The 
exact number of letters written during the one minute 
was recorded immediately after the work was com- 
pleted. The papers were then collected and placed on 
my desk. I talked briefly to the children about the 
value of writing and then asked how many thought 



HANDWRITING 157 

they could do better on a similar test at the end of the 
semester. Nearly every hand went up. Therefore, at 
the end of the semester a test was again given. The 
two specimens were placed together and handed back 
to the pupil for his inspection. The improvement for 
the most part was very marked. These two specimens 
were returned to the desk to be kept on file until the 
end of the year. 

At the beginning of the second semester we talked 
over the question of a writing exhibit at the end of the 
year at which time we would use the specimens from 
the three tests. First, second, and third place ribbons 
were to be given, not for the finest specimen, but for 
the greatest improvement. My county superintendent 
sent a competent judge for the exhibit. I have seen 
fine exercises placed on exhibit, but never have I seen 
an exhibit that attracted more attention from pupil 
and parent. 

Since that year handwriting has been a live subject 
in my schoolroom for both pupil and teacher. 

DEVICES FOR ENCOURAGING IMPROVE- 
MENT IN HANDWRITING 

By Helena M. Ryan 

Good handwriting is a great business asset as well 
as a social accomplishment. To stimulate pride in ac- 
quiring it is no mean task in the daily routine of a 
wide-awake, progressive teacher. 

The first week in September and likewise the first 
week in the second semester, give each pupil a good 
piece of ink paper containing about twenty lines. 
Tell him to write the date in the upper left comer. It 
is a matter of good business to date every paper used, 



158 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

and uniformity of upper left corner for date saves 
time. Write the name and grade in upper right cor- 
ner, thus: John Baker, 5 A. Omit one line. Write 
the flag salute. Omit one line. Write the capital let- 
ters, then the small letters, followed by a line of figures. 
Collect papers. Rule a line with red pencil under the 
specimen, below which the same flag salute, capitals, 
and so forth will be written about Thanksgiving time, 
and again at the close of the semester. 

This is called "The Improvement Sheet," and is to 
be hung in a conspicuous place in the classroom, as a 
sort of "Before and After Advertisement." 

In the meantime, hang up daily papers from 
every pupil in the class. It pays. The greater 
the contrast in the work, the keener the stimu- 
lation. During intermissions, the pupils, in groups of 
twos and threes, will bring into play the socialized 
recitation, for curiosity is prompting them to go from 
paper to paper complimenting and criticizing, with a 
result that their next display will be better looking. 

Have you ever thought how much a child loves a 
show? Have you ever considered how much your 
work may be helped by a really good show, a show in 
which every child is represented? If you have not 
given this phase of school work much thought, try it 
very soon. Do not tell when the shows are to be. 
They should come as surprises. 

A very keen interest was awakened in this manner. 
A wire fifteen feet long had been stretched along the 
wall near the door. Papers on "John Paul Jones," 
which had been written the previous day, with no 
mention made of the intended display, were hung upon 
the wire. These were fastened with snapper clothes- 
pins. The pupil's name was turned under on each pa- 



HANDWRITING 159 

per, so that no partiality would be shown. The teach- 
er put a large number on each piece of work. Near 
the display she placed a ballot box, having a slit in the 
top. Pupils from another grade were invited to vote 
for the best looking paper hanging on the wire. 

They voted with the greatest of interest. In the 
afternoon, tellers were appointed, votes were counted, 
and the best looking paper received twenty-two votes 
of the twenty-nine cast, which showed the good taste 
and judgment of the voters. 

This voting stimulated much interest among all the 
grades. Next day these papers were re-hung showing 
the owners' names. It was really quite laughable how 
electrifying the plan proved to be. 

Good results in handwriting cannot be obtained 
without hard daily work on the part of teacher and 
pupil. At the beginning of each day, fifteen minutes 
are spent on formal handwriting. Also constant re- 
minders are given throughout the day. The teacher 
should never become discouraged, and should always 
praise when even so much as one letter in a line is 
good. Finally, the writing machine is under control, 
and then it glides along automatically. 

Correct posture is most important. It may be 
grouped under five heads and must be learned by the 
pupil. 

1. Head up. 

2. Body — a little to the right of seat. 

3. Feet flat on the floor. 

4. Both forearms on the desk. 

5. Hand gliding on third and fourth finger nails. 

The kind of pen point and holder is very important. 
A child should always use a cork or wooden holder, 



160 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

never a metal holder, for it slips and slides. A stub 
pen is not the pen for a child. 

And, now, a little thought about the child who uses 
the left hand. It is exceedingly unwise to try to make 
him write with his right hand. Save the left-handed 
child an immense amount of grief and time, by train- 
ing him to use his left hand gracefully. Be patient 
with him. 

In conclusion do you prepare your handwriting les- 
son, each day, with as much care as you do your geog- 
raphy lesson, or your arithmetic lesson? Are you 
careful about the appearance of your writing upon the 
blackboard? Children are great imitators. Do you 
keep across the top of your front board the capital let- 
ters, the small letters, and a specimen of figures, so 
that, when incorrect letters and figures are made in 
the classroom, you can quickly point to the type forms 
on the board and bring about a change? Have you a 
good handwriting manual, which you carefully study 
before giving a lesson ? 



ARITHMETIC 



DEVICES FOR DRILL IN THE FOUR 
FUNDAMENTAL OPERATIONS 

By Carolyn L. Strasser 

Each September brings to us, as teachers of the inter- 
mediate grades, children who are negligent, or poorly 
equipped for accurate, speedy calculation in arith- 
metical work. The work of the grade and the progress 
of the more competent pupils is hampered if these 
poorer ones are not brought to a realization of their 
weaknesses and aided in establishing a surer founda- 
tion. 

After a well-arranged preliminary test in the four 
fundamental processes in arithmetic, I group my pupils 
according to their i7iabilities. Those who are slow and 
inaccurate in column addition and whose attention span 
is below standard, are given the exercises described 
below. 

First we build a pyramid of the forty-five combina- 
tions. The pupils are pleased with the novel arrange- 
ment and also with the discovery of the fact that these 
are the only possible combinations of the digits. They 
study and verify them. Then we have a snappy drill. 
Children are paired off. One of the pupils who is 
very proficient in addition is the leader. He calls 
out to each contesting couple ten addition problems. 
The contestants write only the results on the board. 



162 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Then by comparing and checking the answers it is 
possible to see who has won. Thus each one of the chil- 
dren in this remedial group is given a chance to im- 
prove his speed and to test his accuracy. When again 
we have our ten-minute addition practice the pupils 
compare their scores with the ones they have made 
previously, and note improvement in speed or accuracy. 

The subtraction drill is planned and given to all 
who need no further drill in addition. For this the 
addition pyramid is reversed. Home study on sub- 
traction precedes the daily ten-minute exercises until 
we eliminate difficulties and failure in that process. 
Finally a rapid-fire test dictated by the teacher gives 
an opportunity to check the results. In a group of 
twenty-eight who had been considered "unfit," when 
they entered my grade last fall, only four pupils fell be- 
low standard on their last test. The others were then 
considered on a par with those who had not needed the 
addition and subtraction drills; and in all calculations 
involving these operations they proved that they had 
profited by the intensive work. Except when careless- 
ness caused errors, the results were almost invariably 
encouraging. 

As an aid to our work in multiplication we play a 
game called "Buzz." I announce, "We will play Buzz 
7." The children are given a few simple directions for 
the game. All remain seated, there being an equal 
number of pupils in each row, if possible. All have one 
turn at counting 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, Buzz, 8, 9, 10, and so 
forth. Every time a 7 or any multiple of 7 occurs, a 
pupil must say "Buzz." Instead of 17, 21, 27, 28, and 
so on he says "Buzz." The game goes on until the goal 
which was previously set has been reached. When 
anyone fails to say "Buzz" at the proper time, he is out 



ARITHMETIC 163 

and must remain out until the goal is reached and a 
new game is begun. Ninety-eight is the usual goal. 
The row having the greatest number of pupils to 
reach the goal is declared the winner. 

Any number may be used for the buzzer in playing 
this game. Nine is a good one, as it is often a stumbling 
block in multiplication. 

For division we play a game in which the leader calls 
the name of a child and states a problem, such as, 72 
divided by 8. The players have cards on which are 
written numbers from 1 to 12. The player who is 
called upon for this problem, for example, must flash 
the 9 card in answer. If he flashes the incorrect card 
it is taken from him. At the end of the game the player 
having the most cards is declared the winner. 

After several weeks of daily ten-minute drills in the 
four fundamental processes an endurance test is given 
and all who are able to make a record of eighty per 
cent in accuracy in a given time are presented with a 
paper on which is stamped, "I can succeed. I will be a 
first-class calculator." With this slogan, each success- 
ful pupil gains confidence in himself and proves more 
ambitious and painstaking. 

We cannot hope to make all our children reach the 
standards we set; but let's put a tick in arithmetic by 
making it alive, and by animating ourselves and our 
boys and girls with the "I can" and "I will" spirit. 

VISUALIZING PRIMARY ARITHMETIC 

By" Florence R. Jordan 

I have often had pupils who found miscellaneous 
problems a great stumbling block. Of course I am not 
speaking of bright pupils as they need very little 



164 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

assistance from the teacher. I am referring to the 
ones who fail to get the gist of the question, and are 
never sure whether to add, subtract, multiply, or di- 
vide. For them, I have used the following method and 
have found it helpful. 

I present this problem to the class : How many trees 
are in an orchard which has eight rows of trees with 
six trees in a row? 

Before any child has a chance to give a wrong an- 
swer, such as "Fourteen," have the children close their 
eyes and try to see the orchard. Ask : How many rows 
are in the orchard? How many trees in each row? 
How many times do you see six trees? How many 
trees altogether? What have you done to find the 
number ? 

Another problem which I use is : A man has a flock 
of sixty sheep. He sold seventeen. How many had he 
then? 

As before, have the pupils imagine that they see the 
flock of sheep, see some of them sold and moving 
away, and a smaller flock remaining. Ask : How many 
were there at first, how many were sold ? How many 
are still there? What have you done to find the num- 
ber? 

If the problem is in addition, the pupils can see the 
first group of objects become larger by putting more 
objects with it. 

Division may be taught in a similar manner by the 
use of such a problem as this one: A woman divided 
thirty roses equally among five little girls. How many 
did each receive? 

Have each pupil imagine that he is to do the same 
thing. To make it more real, ask several what color 
his roses are. Tell the children that before they pass the 



ARITHMETIC 165 

roses to the little girls they must be sure they know 
just how many to give each one. Ask how many know 
the number, and what they have done to find it. 

Give many supplementary problems. Ask the pupils 
to see each step before going on, but do not continue 
the leading questions unless necessary. Wait until 
the children have had plenty of time to get the answer 
before asking for it. 

Keep up this practice, for when children do the 
same thing often enough, the habit is established. 
This habit develops clear thinking, and with clear 
thinking comes accuracy. 

ARITHMETIC MOTIVATED BY THE 
CHILDREN'S INTEREST IN BASEBALL 

By Clinton H. Atwood 

Arithmetic had not been going very well during the 
first month of school. The children had evidently lost 
interest in it during the summer vacation; but their 
interest in the outcome of the world's baseball series 
was at its highest point. Realizing this last fact and 
also realizing that the subject must have some "pep" 
injected into it, it was decided to connect the subject 
with the thing that vitally interested the pupils ; name- 
ly, the world's series in baseball. 

With this conclusion in mind, a game of baseball 
arithmetic was devised. Two teams of practically 
even scholarship in arithmetic were chosen. Two 
students who lead their class in the subject were se- 
lected as captains of the competing teams. The teams 
were then allowed to choose their names, which very 
naturally became the "Giants" and the "Yankees." 
The game then began. 



166 



PEDAGOGICAL PEP 



The contest was to be held for six weeks in succes- 
sion, and then the winning team was to be given a 
party by the losers. Each week's work was to con- 
stitute one game of five innings. A score board was 
arranged on a part of the blackboard where it would 
not interfere with the other work. It was drawn in 
the following manner: 

12 3 4 5 Total 



GIANTS 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 


YANKEES 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 




Games 
Won 


Games 
Lost 


Per 

Cent 


GIANTS 1 1 i 1 


YANKEES 1 


1 


1 


1 



The standing of the teams from week to week was 
a scheme to keep the interest running high. If one of 
the teams lost one week, it would have an equal chance 
to improve its work and win the following week's 
game. This device was found to be very helpful in 
keeping the interest up at all times. In fact, the losing 
team each week always won the following week by 
persistent and hard work, and at the end of six weeks 
the two teams were tied, having won three games and 
lost three games each. It was necessary to run the 
contest for the seventh week to break the tie and de- 
cide the winner. 

The per cent received in arithmetic by each team 
member was scored for his team as follows : 
80-89% scored one run. 
90-99% scored two runs. 
100% scored three runs. 
0-49% lost two runs. 



ARITHMETIC 167 

50-70% lost one run. 

71-79% neither scored nor lost. 

The above points were based on the results of the 
written work for the day. Just before school closed at 
the end of an afternoon session, the captains went to 
the board and, as each student read his results, figured 
the scores for the day. Students reading scores that 
lost runs for their team were sure to hear from their 
team members after school was over. At the end of 
the week, the scores for the week were added up and 
the results were placed in the table. 

At the end of the contest, a number of interesting 
conclusions were reached : 

1. Interest, enthusiasm, and "pep" were no longer 
lacking in arithmetic. 

2. The standard of the class was brought up to a 
high point in arithmetic. 

3. Poor arithmetic students did better work than 
ever before in their school career. 

4. Pressure was brought to bear on lazy students by 
their more zealous team mates. 

5. Arithm.etic became more real and more vital than 
ever before to the competing pupils. 

6. Good sportsmanship was developed by the con- 
test. 

7. Cheating was entirely eliminated from the class 
because opposing team members saw to it that 
no one copied. 

8. Delightful fellowship was gained through a final 
party at the end of the contest. 

Generally reviewing the contest, it was a great suc- 
cess in many ways. It developed in the children good 
habits which are noticeable in the higher grades into 
which these children have passed. 



168 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

HOW I SECURED SPEED AND 
ACCURACY IN MULTIPLICATION 

By Mae Bradford 

I discovered that my fourth and fifth grades were 
hampered in their work by a lack of speed and accu- 
racy in the multiphcation combinations. They seemed 
to have no serious trouble in repeating the tables in 
their regular order, but they were completely at sea 
when certain combinations, standing alone, were en- 
countered. 

The pupils were as anxious as I to conquer this 
state of affairs, as they were able to see how this lack 
of fundamental facts hindered them in the more com- 
plex processes. 

Accordingly we agreed upon a system that interests 
the pupils as well as instructs them. 

On slips of paper I write mixed multiplication com- 
binations and distribute them to the class. At a signal, 
all begin to write the answers to the various combina- 
tions. At the end of two minutes the papers are taken 
up, and on a score card I mark after each pupil's name 
the number of answers which are correct. 

We repeat these tests every day for a week or more 
— giving different lists every day — until almost every 
pupil can boast of a perfect score. Af tervards we have 
frequent reviews to see how well the combinations and 
answers are retained. 

This, I think, is especially good drill work, as it is 
not a case of the pupil's rivalry against the class or 
any particular person in the class, but against him- 
self. 

Each day he tries to improve the score of the pre- 
ceding test, and even though he may be backward and 



ARITHMETIC 169 

somewhat slow in getting as high a score as the 
others, he feels encouraged if he can make small im- 
provements in his own work from day to day. 

It is a race with self, and it surely counts in both 
principle and precept. 

ARITHMETIC MADE A LIVE SUBJECT 
IN THE CURRICULUM 

By Mabel M. Richards 

My distinct feeling toward the problems in any 
arithmetic text is that they are but guides for the real 
teacher of arithmetic. The practical problems are 
found in the everyday environment of the child. Begin- 
ning with the school, there are any number of prob- 
lems arising out of school activities such as the school 
garden, excursions in geography, standings of the va- 
rious teams in athletics, graphs, finding percentages of 
attendance, and so forth. 

The next rich field is the home. Our pupils are re- 
quired to work out certain lists of problems from data 
furnished by the home and are in every way encour- 
aged to try to find in what ways arithmetic functions 
in the home. 

We are brought into contact with the arithmetic 
problems of the city, state, and nation through the col- 
umns of our daily newspaper, and we sometimes think 
that, after all, a good teacher of arithmetic could teach 
with a newspaper as the only text. Here we are cer- 
tainly brought into contact with all sorts of interesting 
problems in the interpretation of data, the sporting 
world, the stock exchange, foreign exchange, and so 
forth. Our local market reports are used in figuring 
costs of various articles and we have no end of good 



170 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

problems in fractions and mixed numbers thus fur- 
nished. Our merchants' advertisements furnish us all 
the problems we need about discount. There are any 
number of things constantly being reported about such 
topics as insurance and taxes. When the football 
season is on, we teach the children how to follow the 
ball across the field from the newspaper accounts 
alone, how the scores are figured, how the field is laid 
off, and how percentages are reckoned. 

In our seventh and eighth grades we find wonderful 
opportunities for furnishing problems of vital inter- 
est. When the subject of taxes is under consideration, 
we use the local data compiled by our city and county 
treasurer, visit the office, see how the books are made 
up, having the collector explain the various phases of 
the tax situation. We then figure out taxes on certain 
pieces of property according to the local rates, com- 
paring our rates with those of cities about our size. 

When we study insurance, we have a representative 
of one of the companies talk to the class on the subject, 
giving local rates and explaining in detail what every- 
one ought to know regarding insurance. The same 
thing is done in connection with life insurance and the 
pupils are permitted to ask any questions regarding it 
and thus many matters are clarified. 

When the subject of investments is considered, we 
have one of the investment firms send up a number of 
their representatives who discuss the problem with the 
class most thoroughly, explaining how to judge an in- 
vestment, how to figure your returns, and best of all 
what type of investments to make and not to make. 

In banking, a local banker explains to the class many 
of the details of banking not generally understood, and 
also the value of a bank to its customers. 



ARITHMETIC 171 

When we study about the parcel post system, our 
postmaster is most kind and allows us to visit the office 
and see how the packages are weighed, cared for, and 
distributed. 

In figuring gas and electric light bills we use as a 
basis the local rates, which a representative of this 
company very kindly explains to the class. 

We often require pupils to furnish a home for a 
given sum of money. Our merchants are most courte- 
ous and take the class through their stores, being as 
careful to explain everything and quote prices as if 
each child was a bona fide customer. 

These are but a few of the many ways in which we 
try to make arithmetic a real live subject in the cur- 
riculum. We find such contact with the business world 
most helpful. We have yet to find a business man 
who is not more than willing, even enthusiastic, to co- 
operate with us. Thus the confidence of the business 
world in the teacher and the schools is strengthened, 
and in return a very friendly attitude is developed on 
the part of the schools. 

THE PLAY ELEMENT INTRODUCED 
INTO ARITHMETIC 

By Fannie M. Norton 

Gymnastic arithmetic serves a double purpose. It 
provides exercise and change for a restless group of 
children, and gives drill in quick, clear thinking and 
absolute attention. 

Have the children form a circle around the room. 
A child is chosen to be "It" and takes his place in the 
center of the circle, with a soft ball, or better still, a 
bean bag, in his hand. At the signal from tY 3 teacher 



172 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

he gives a problem in arithmetic, using the processes of 
addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division in 
any order, and keeping the results in his mind as he 
goes from step to step; for instance, 2x10+8 — 4-^. 
2x3=? As soon as he has finished giving his problem 
he throws the ball to some member of the class, vi^ho 
must announce the correct result as he catches the 
ball. In case the child to v^^hom the ball has been 
thrown has not been quick enough to solve the prob- 
lem he throws the ball to someone else in the ring, 
and so on until the correct answer is given. 

Here the teacher must be on the alert. Each time a 
child fails to reply, or replies incorrectly, when the ball 
is passed to him, a foul is recorded against him. Three 
fouls make a strike. Since this is a form of quaker 
game, and absolute attention is required, speaking out 
or grabbing the ball out of turn or in fact anything 
which disturbs, is counted as a strike. Three strikes 
put a "man" out and if this happens he takes his seat 
and is given work to do. 

The children enjoy this game immensely, and the 
way in which they develop in quick accurate thinking 
is very gratifying to the teacher. 

THE HOUSE THAT THE CLASS BUILT 

Bj^ Letitia M. Nash , 

With twenty-five restless, wide-awake boys and 
girls in my seventh-grade class just ready to take up 
building problems — those problems involving brick, 
stone, and board measure — I was confronted with this 
question : How shall I present this work in a vital way 
so that J. may have the cooperation of my pupils, and 
accompli^'" the end for which I am striving? 



ARITHMETIC 173 

At last I thought of the following plan, which I hope 
may help some other teacher over a rough place. 

Knowing that several of the boys were Scouts and 
often camped out, and that most of the other members 
of the class had made one or several trips to a camp, 
I decided to use their interest in camping. Accord- 
ingly, at the proper time, the subject of "camping out" 
was introduced, apparently quite by accident ; and soon 
we were all busy talking of the joys of camp life, and 
all quite eager to relate our experiences. No doubt 
some of the more cunning pupils were slyly laughing 
"up their sleeves" because they had managed to get me 
away from the unpleasant subject of arithmetic to the 
much more attractive one of camping days. 

When the interest and enthusiasm had reached a 
proper pitch, I proposed that we plan a summer camp 
cottage, suitable for the class; find out what it would 
cost to build it; and also build a small model of it in 
order to see just what the big camp cottage would be 
like. The children were wild to begin at once, and each 
member of the class wanted some task assigned to him. 

"First, we must have a plan of the cottage," I said, 
and plans were discussed with a vim unheard-of in the 
history of that class. Of course the children differed 
widely in opinion at first, but by judicious questions 
and suggestions all finally came to desire about the 
same style: a kitchen and storeroom, a big dining 
room, and two long sleeping porches, one the full 
length of one side of the house for the boys, and an- 
other just like it on the other side for the girls. Each 
was to bring to class the next day a carefully drawn 
plan. These were examined and criticized, and finally 
one of them, drawn by one of the older boys, was ac- 
cepted as being the best. Another boy reported that 



174 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

his father, an architect, had offered to make a blue 
print ; so the plan was turned over to the architect who 
had so kindly offered his services. 

The next step was to plan for the foundation, and 
here again there was a lively discussion which finally 
resulted in the decision to use brick pillars. The class 
then worked together over the brick problem, a com- 
mittee having visited local dealers a day or two before 
this to get prices on the different kinds of brick. The 
children had examined and measured brick pillars at 
home or elsewhere, and could tell just how the bricks 
were laid, so they very easily arrived at the number 
that would be needed. This information, together 
with the price of the kind decided upon, was then 
placed in the form of a problem by several of the 
class, the best one being selected and solved for the 
collection of problems we were making. 

Every part of the building was worked out in the 
same way, even to the windows and the curtains, lin- 
oleum for the kitchen, and a rug for the dining room. 
Dealers were consulted, prices and samples collected, 
and the suitability and durability of everything used 
was carefully discussed. Sometimes the discussions 
became almost heated when there was a difference of 
opinion as to the best to use, the children arguing as 
seriously as though we were really going to build the 
house. When we decided what to use, the problem was 
then made by the class and solved by them. 

Not the least important part of the work was the 
building of the little house, which was done by several 
of the boys who worked after school as long as there 
was sufficient light, and also on one or two Satur- 
days. The lumber was secured from the scrap heap of 
a planing mill, and brought to the schoolhouse by two 



ARITHMETIC 175 

of the little builders. A dealer donated the roofing, 
the teacher brought the paint and some of the pupils 
brought wall paper, a scrap of linoleum for the kitch- 
en, and a piece of carpet for the dining room. The 
windows were made of old kodak plates. The little 
house was painted white and trimmed with green, the 
walls were papered, and the floors covered. One of 
the boys built a dining table, and camp cots similar to 
army cots. The girls made curtains for the windows, 
and mattresses, pillows, sheets, and blankets for the 
cots. The little model was made on the scale of one 
inch to the foot, and was thirty-eight inches long by 
thirty-six inches wide. The tiny cots were six and a 
half inches by three inches. When the little house was 
finighed we took its picture, and we also took a picture 
of the whole class. 

The last bit of work we did was to arrange the pic- 
ture of the house, that of the class, the plans, and all 
the problems in a notebook, each page with its proper 
label; as, "This is the house that the class built," 
"This is the class that built the house," "These are the 
bricks that hold up the house that the class built," and 
other similar and appropriate explanations. Our 
problems had an individuality about them, too. 

The little cottage and the booklets were placed on 
exhibition during the general school exhibit and at- 
tracted not a little attention and comment. Later the 
house and some of the best of the booklets were ex- 
hibited at the state fair with other exhibits from our 
school. 



SPELLING 



DEFECTS AND REMEDIES IN THE 
TEACHING OF SPELLING 

By Emma H. Gramberg 

Poor spelling is one of the most glaring faults in 
the public schools of to-day. Business men of ten years 
ago wailed dismally that their stenographei*s could not 
spell, but unless some drastic measures are adopted and 
enforced in the common schools, the business man of 
twenty years hence will have ceased to v/ail — for he 
will be no wiser orthographically than his stenographer 
is. Then our country will lead the world in the unen- 
viable reputation of being a nation in which its citizens 
cannot spell their own language. 

Perhaps you think me a fanatic on this subject. 
After having battled bravely with the spelling inabil- 
ities of some eight or nine hundred young Americans 
only to find that the percentage of poor spellers in- 
creased as each new wave poured in upon me, I 
turned into a spelling ''crank" in self-defense. 

The following are a few of the causes of poor spell- 
ing: 

1. Phonetic impossibilities of the English language. 

2. Incorrect phonetic teaching. The old method of 
alphabetical teaching has given place to phonics, 
which would be vastly superior if handled in the right 
way, but results indicate wrong handling. 



SPELLING 177 

3. Lack of understanding by the pupil of basic prin- 
ciples of word building. 

4. Lack of observation. The pupil learns to recog- 
nize a word by its general size and shape, and can thus 
read rapidly, getting more or less of the thought of 
the lesson, but he fails to see the word in its alpha- 
betical make-up. 

5. Not enough drill on the word itself. Phonics and 
spelling together should supply this drill, but they 
somehow fall short. 

6. Not enough written work to use words learned. 

7. Habit of learning spelling for recitation only ; 
cramming, not learning. This habit is sometimes fos- 
tered by giving rewards for perfect spelling recita- 
tions, regardless of practical spelling on other papers, 
and thus giving the children high grades when they 
really are poor spellers. 

8. Indifference of many teachers in correcting mis- 
spelled words. 

9. General carelessness on the part of the pupil. 
This is one of the worst enemies of efficiency. Pupils 
must be impressed with the necessity of working care- 
fully and thoughtfully. 

10. Pupils fail to divide words into syllables and 
often cannot see the phonetic divisions of a word. 
They try to grasp the word as a whole and when that 
is imposible they get excited and give up. 

11. Lack of knowledge of some of the simpler rules, 
and of prefixes and suffixes and their effects on words. 

The following cures are recommended : 

1. Be sure the pupil knows the word, its meaning, 
and how to pronounce it. 

2. Teach a few simple rules for spelling that have 
few exceptions. 



178 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

3. Teach and emphasize rules always, never excep- 
tions. For example, ask, "Does that word follow the 
rule?" If it does, have the rule repeated. If it does 
not, have the rule repeated just the same. Lay the 
stress on the rule, and not on the exception. 

4. Let pupils write their words to study them, pref- 
erably at the blackboard, but do not let them copy the 
words incorrectly. If possible, let them study words 
aloud occasionally. Let them dictate the words to 
each other. This helps both, as the dictator has to 
follow the word closely to detect errors. 

5. Do not allow an incorrect form to remain before 
the pupils uncoiTected. At the blackboard, have them 
erase an incorrect form at once; on paper have them 
cross it out and write it correctly at your dictation, or 
let them copy it from the book or dictionary. 

6. Have most of the spelling at the blackboard. It 
saves your time, the pupils' paper, and improves their 
handwriting. Let them back away from the board 
and criticize their handwriting frequently, favorably 
as well as unfavorably. Perspective is necessary. 
Most people cannot see blackboard work accurately 
unless they are from three to five feet from it. 

7. Let pupils spell orally the words of the previous 
spelling lesson. Always require the pupil to write 
correctly from five to fifteen times the word misspelled 
in a spelling lesson. In correcting to, too, or two re- 
quire the word which follows to be written with it ; as, 
to town, too busy, two dogs. Keep a notebook in which 
to record all the words misspelled by your pupils in any 
and all written work, each pupil's words by themselves. 
If the same word is again misspelled on a pupil's paper, 
have it written from ten to fifteen times. Increase 
the penalty, and give frequent oral tests on such words 



SPELLING 179 

until the pupil spells them correctly. Grade children 
should rarely be asked to rewrite a whole composition 
on account of misspelled words. A distaste for com- 
position work follows such forms of correction. Dis- 
taste for writing may even follow the five-times meth- 
od, unless the teacher is tactful and makes use of 
healthful competition. 

8. Encourage pupils to keep a complete correct list 
of "stumbling blocks," that they may review them 
frequently. 

9. Have words used in sentences, orally or written. 
It strengthens word knowledge and aids in composi- 
tion. Devise drill games, have "spell downs" or any- 
thing to keep up the interest and gain the objective. 

10. Require much written work, that you may find 
the words in which the child is weak ; tiy any vocabu- 
lary builders you may find in books, institutes, or else- 
where, but never let a misspelled word pass by. 

11. Correct all written work and hand it back. See 
that the pupil understands why he was corrected. 

In conclusion, a few lines will sum up my theme: 
Drill, drill, drill, for the sake of the future ortho- 
graphic reputation of the greatest nation on earth; 
bubble over with cheerfulness and hope and enthusi- 
asm. The worst speller may surprise you yet. 

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE ASSIGN- 
MENT IN THE SPELLING LESSON 

By Cecil S. Easton 

To my mind, no subject in the entire curriculum is 
more important than spelling. When we leave school 
and enter the various pursuits of life, we are indeed 
handicapped if we lack the ability to spell. And yet, 



180 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

in many of our rural schools, we may scan the entire 
program to find only a few brief minutes at the close 
of the day set aside for this important subject; and 
then, it frequently happens that the history or geog- 
raphy lesson is allowed to run into this short period, 
so that the teacher has only time to pronounce the 
words hastily, collect the papers, and say, "Take the 
next twenty words for to-morrow. Dismissed." 

For some time I "taught" spelling much in this man- 
ner; but, as the results obtained were about on par 
with my method, I began to realize that a change was 
necessary, and finally succeeded in working out one 
which has not only produced better spelling but has 
also made the class periods infinitely more interesting. 

I learned to give a short advance assignment, not 
more than ten words, and about an equal number of 
Vvords from previous lessons or from the "Black List," 
a list of words which had been prepared from the mis- 
spelled words in other lessons. The advance words 
were written on the board, correctly divided into syl- 
lables, and accented. The attention of the class was 
called to each silent letter or "catch" of any kind; 
sometimes the parts requiring especial attention 
were written in colored chalk. I took the greatest 
care that each child should be able to pronounce every 
word. The word meanings were also discussed in a 
general way and the words were sometimes used in 
oral sentences. 

Occasionally, a group of children were required to 
use these words in writing sentences on the board, 
while the remainder of the class watched for mis- 
spelled words. This brought the word before the vi- 
sion many times and the muscles also became familiar 
with the movements necessary to produce it. 



SPELLING 181 

Frequently we played a game in which I wrote a 
word in large letters or in colored chalk on the board. 
The class looked closely at it, spelled it aloud in con- 
cert, and wrote it on paper after I had erased it from 
the board. This, you will see, brought into use the vis- 
ual, auditory, and muscular senses. We proceeded in 
this way through the whole advance assignment. Then 
the papers were exchanged, the list replaced on the 
board, and the papers corrected by the class to ascer- 
tain who spelled most correctly. 

The recitations occupied but a small part of the 
class period. I believe in both oral and written recita- 
tions. Usually the class stood and spelled aloud, in 
turn, the words from the day's lesson and from one or 
two previous lessons. They then wrote them, as I 
pronounced them. 

It is my policy never to let a word "die," therefore 
reviews were frequent and interesting. If time per- 
mitted, we closed the period with a spelling game, 

A SPELLING MATCH BETWEEN PAR- 
ENTS AND PUPILS AROUSES INTEREST 

By" Blanche B. McFarland 

Before school had been in session six weeks I real- 
ized that vigorous measures must be taken to bring up 
the work of my sixth grade in spelling. Careful teach- 
ing, calling attention to mistakes, low daily grades, 
and the very low grades given at the end of the first 
month brought very little improvement. 

I made it a point of honor to correct every paper 
handed in, whatever the subject, underlining the mis- 
spelled words in red ink and requiring a return sheet 
giving each of these words correctly spelled. We 



182 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

spent hours of time "staying in" to make up failures in 
the daily spelling lessons and correct the spelling 
on papers of all kinds. Each step forward represented 
an undue amount of effort on my part, with no assur- 
ance that the good work would go on when this force 
was removed. 

Meanwhile, I was carefully checking up ray teaching 
of spelling. I studied and put into practice some 
splendid methods; and I made use of a system of 
teaching spelling through games. There was undoubt- 
ed gain but little real enthusiasm. 

It was about the end of the fourth month that, at a 
county institute, a number of us who had been talking 
over our spelling troubles determined to work up a 
county contest to which the fifth, sixth, seventh, and 
eighth grades throughout the county would be eligible. 
The county superintendent entered heartily into our 
plans. 

The announcements as to this contest became the 
signal for renewed effort with my grade. Since the 
real purpose of teaching and learning spelling is that 
we may write words correctly, the county contest 
would be a written, not an oral, spelling match. But 
since little is accomplished without enthusiasm, and 
since I realized the great potentialities in oral spelling 
for arousing enthusiasm, a series of spelling matches 
was arranged between my grade and the fifth. 

The fifth grade won the first match. For my grade 
it was the best thing that could have happened. The 
children were at last aroused. One boy, whom I had 
previously tried in vain to awaken to his need, an- 
nounced boldly, "If I had been present that day they 
wouldn't have won." I reminded him that the sixth 
grade still had a chance. They went to work of their 



SPELLING 18S 

own accord, with the result that they won the series, 
though the fifth grade fought valiantly. 

During this time spelling became the subject of 
much talk among the pupils and their parents. Fre- 
quently parents were heard proclaiming the fact that 
spelling was not taught as it used to be, and deploring 
the decadence of spelling ability in the public in gen- 
eral and their children in particular. One day, when 
a pupil had been telling me what his father had said in 
this connection, I asked how many in the sixth grade 
would be willing to spell against their mothers and fa- 
thers. Instantly the grade was interested, the result 
being a challenge to the parents to meet the grade. 

A committee of pupils was chosen to arrange the de- 
tails of our challenge; and two days later a hecto- 
graphed copy of the following was sent to each patron : 

There is to be a county contest in spelling 
in which our sixth grade hopes to play a win- 
ning part. (Here essential details of the con- 
test were given.) 

This is a splendid thing for us in more 
ways than one. We want a well-prepared 
representative, and we want every pupil of 
the grade to profit as well. 

Are you interested? Will you help? 

Please answer the following questions 
and return this slip : 

1. If a spelling match between pupils of 
the sixth grade and their parents is held, will 
you be present if you can? 

Yes No 
Mother 
Father 



184 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

2. Are you willing to spell in this match? 

Yes No 
Mother 
Father 

3. What night next week would be most 
convenient for you to come to Franklin 
School for this spelling match? 

Your children are interested. Are you? 

(Signed) 

Meanwhile another committee wrote the following 
announcement, and arranged with the editor of our 
paper for its publication. 

A Challenge 

The statement is often made that spelling 
is not so well taught now as in the good old 
days, that children of to-day cannot spell as 
well as their parents could when they were 
the same age. 

Can parents spell as well now as their chil- 
dren do ? The parents of the sixth grade pu- 
pils of Franklin School are invited to "prove 
up" in a good old-fashioned spelling match, 
with parents versus pupils. 

We are ready for the battle. Are you ? 

(Signed) 

Chairman of Pupil Com- 
mittee, Sixth Grade, 
Franklin School. 

The returns from our questionnaire were most grat- 
ifying ; and the next Friday night was agreed upon for 
the great event. 



SPELLING 185 

Many homes had parent representatives — in some 
cases the mother or father, in others, both parents. 
From three homes, since neither father nor mother 
could come, a married sister, an uncle, and a grand- 
father, respectively, were pressed into service. 

A committee on arrangements had planned every 
phase of the program. A reception committee wel- 
comed our guests ; a committee on rules governing the 
contest, composed of a pupil, a parent, and a disinter- 
ested person, went into another room and determined 
the details, the crowd in the meanwhile playing a bean 
bag relay under the direction of the teacher. The 
rules were then read, after which a young lawyer of 
the community made a humorous speech as to the na- 
ture of the occasion and called the combatants into 
the arena. 

There were forty-one children ready to spell with 
only twenty-seven parents ready to spell against them. 
So the young lawyer undertook to "auction off" the va- 
cant places, causing much laughter with his witti- 
cisms, and succeeding in getting ten more parents to 
enter the lists. It had been previously agreed that all 
pupils would be allowed to spell, whether or not an 
equal number of parents could be enrolled. 

To the sprightly accompaniment of a march, played 
on the phonograph, with much laughter and gay chat- 
ter, each side filed past the umpire and the one who 
was to dictate the words, and shook hands with them. 
Again in line, the cheer leaders for a time held sway, 
after which the battle was on. 

And what excitement there was, what good-hu- 
mored raillery! How the "old boys" and "old girls" 
did cast away their years and vie with the youngsters 
in interest and in effort! What a feeling of real hu- 



186 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

man oneness prevailed as they struggled — and won or 
lost — and laughed together! 

The pupils won. The representative of the sixth 
grade also won in the county contest. But to me those 
facts were merely incidents, for the real victory was in 
the work done by those pupils from then on. 

A SUCCESSFUL METHOD OF TEACHING 
SPELLING 

By* Margaret M. Clark 

For several years I have been a teacher in the gram- 
mar grades, and have found few pupils who, upon en- 
tering those grades, could pronounce ordinary words 
correctly or spell with any degree of accuracy. 

I always begin with the simplest of all the mechan- 
ics of spelling, syllabication. I continue with it until 
the pupils are sure of this phase of the subject. Then 
I take up the diacritical marking of words. I make 
my own chart from a large sheet of white bristol 
board. With a pencil I place all the marks, of which 
Webster makes use, upon this chart. Then I begin 
with *'A," and give its seven sounds with words to il- 
lustrate. Next comes "E," and so on until all the 
vowels are illustrated. After this I place the few 
sounds of the consonants on the chart, and a word to 
illustrate, as in the case of the vowels. 

I find that the pupils take great interest in syllabi- 
cating and marking the words in their spelling lessons, 
as well as other words, which they do with perfect 
ease. Best of all, they can now use the dictionary in- 
telligently, for both pronunciation and meanings. 

As to meanings of words, I find that the simplest 
ones are often those which give the greatest trouble. 



SPELLING 187 

To ascertain just what the children need along this 
line, I have the pupils use their spelling words in oral 
sentences. If they can use the word correctly, I sel- 
dom call for the dictionary meaning or meanings. Oc- 
casionally, however, I assign a dictionary lesson on 
difficult or obscure words which I feel the class should 
understand. 

After the class becomes sufficiently interested, I 
find that the study of the derivation of words is very 
profitable. Children of French lineage are anxious to 
see how many of our commonly used words are of the 
French extraction ; those of Greek parentage are inter- 
ested in the wonderful contribution of beautiful and 
expressive words from Greece; while all are quick to 
notice the usefulness of the Latin words, which form 
the backbone of our more or less hybrid language. 

As we progress, I teach the diphthongs and triph- 
thongs; review the phonetic work of earlier years; 
and begin to correlate the spelling with all other sub- 
jects. In composition work I find an opportunity to 
teach the use of synonyms and antonyms. I lay spe- 
cial emphasis upon the use of the right word in the 
right place. The children delight in compiling lists of 
synonyms for common words. 

Since many children do not know how to use the dic- 
tionary intelligently, I generally give several lessons 
in its use. I show the children how to tell derivation, 
parts of speech, syllabication, pronunciation, and mean- 
ing, together with the synonym, if one is given. 

In teaching the common suffixes and prefixes, I have 
a chart, similar to the one used for the diacritical mark- 
ings. In this manner the desired information is con- 
stantly before the pupils, and aids them in their work 
in spelling. 



188 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

When this work is completed, I find that spelling 
takes on a newer and easier aspect. The children be- 
gin to use better English and a greater variety of 
words to express their thoughts. Each lesson becomes 
a spelling lesson. Composition is no longer a bugbear ; 
geography, with its hard words, becomes a game, in 
which students vie with one another in spelling the 
chief rivers, cities, and products; history, arith- 
metic, physiology, all become fields in which ambitious 
spellers exercise their prowess. This eliminates the 
poor spelling found on examination papers, even when 
the pupil has a good understanding of the subject. 

My spelling class spells orally about once a week. 
At this time I bring up all the words which have been 
missed during that time. I keep my text marked, and 
refer to all misspelled words, not once, but many 
times, until the troublesome words are learned. 

Having used these methods for years, I know they 
are a satisfactory means of teaching the subject. 

SPELLING SHOULD OCCUPY AN IMPOR- 
TANT PLACE IN THE CURRICULUM 

By Grace Kiner 

One of the most difficult subjects in which to arouse 
interest in the four upper grades is spelling. To 
most pupils spelling means learning a list of letters 
in order, and remembering them long enough to write 
them down at class time, with little idea of their pro- 
nunciation and less of their meaning. Arousing inter- 
est in spelling in the four upper grades is a task re- 
quiring work, intelligence, and imagination. 

Oral spelling, except as a novelty once a week, is 
useless. No child spells orally in ordinary work. 



SPELLING 189 

Some children may be ear-minded, in which case spell- 
ing orally may help to fix the word upon their memory, 
but for most children it is unnecessary. However, a 
child should not learn to spell a word that he cannot 
pronounce. The object of the spelling lesson is not 
only to teach the child to spell words with which he is 
already familiar but also to enlarge his vocabulary; 
and he certainly will not use any words that he cannot 
pronounce. If he is to get the most good from the les- 
son he must know the meanings of any new words and 
be able to use them in conversation. In both of these 
connections a good desk dictionary for each child is in- 
dispensable. Teach the diacritical marks and famil- 
iarize the child with the dictionary so that he will turn 
to it as readily as to any textbook. 

Often, instead of merely writing down the list of 
words in the lesson, I have the children write a sen- 
tence using the word correctly, and then read the sen- 
tence aloud to the class. There can be very helpful 
and Interesting discussions as to the use of certain 
words, and this of course helps the pupil to become fa- 
miliar with them. Sometimes the teacher may have 
the pupils write stories or descriptions using all of the 
words in the lesson. This is a good drill in spelling 
and in language, and is a great aid in developing the 
imagination and ingenuity. 

Too many teachers tuck spelling away into any un- 
occupied ten minutes in the day ; to conduct a spelling 
class properly requires as much time as is given to 
reading or language. The lack of significance attached 
to it probably accounts for the lack of interest shown 
in spelling. The first of the period can be devoted to 
writing the words of that day's lesson and discussing 
their meanings and pronunciations ; then the last half 



190 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

should be used in going over the next day's lesson. The 
new words should be pronounced, spelled aloud, fami- 
liar words noted, new ones marked for study, and the 
class made generally familiar with the assignment. 
One device that creates interest is to have the pupil 
look for a few seconds at a column of words, then close 
his book and say them in order, thus visualizing the 
words as they look in print. Then have him look at 
them a few seconds longer and try to spell them in or- 
der. Of course at first he will fail almost every time 
but soon he will be able to do it almost at a glance, thus 
learning concentration and quick perception. 

Spelling should be closely correlated with other sub- 
jects. New words in reading, geography, and history 
can often be substituted for the regular lesson from 
the spelling book which too often is made of words al- 
ready familiar to the pupil. In this way the children 
learn the necessity of knowing the spelling of words 
outside the set lists in the speller, and the subject is 
given a new life and interest. 

One way of creating interest is to let the children 
take turns being teacher. The pupil who pronounces 
the words and grades the papers, without the use of 
the book, is graded upon his pronunciation and his 
grading of the other papers. 

It is easy to get children interested in the etymology 
of words. Tell them of the various languages of which 
English is composed — Latin, Celtic, Teutonic, and 
Anglo-Saxon. Give them lists of words from the vari- 
ous origins and soon they will be watching for the ety- 
mology of the new words that they come across. There 
are interesting stories connected with many of our 
common words, for example the word "laconic" which 
refers to the short, terse speech of the early Spartans, 



SPELLING 191 

the people of Laconia. If you can arouse the spirit of 
research in a child the battle is won. Of course, for 
this a dictionary is indispensable. 

The spell-down is good training and a valuable 
means of arousing enthusiasm, but there are many 
ways of varying the old-fashioned spell-down. Some- 
times have the children use the given word in a sen- 
tence, or let the teacher spell the word and the pupil 
pronounce it, or give a root word for the pupil to give 
a derivative. Giving a synonym or antonym of the 
word is a good practice. Many more such devices will 
occur to the thoughtful teacher. 

In connection with the spell-down there are many 
simple spelling games which can be used when the pu- 
pils are dull and in need of relaxation. A good one is 
the game of "Ghosts." The pupils choose sides. The 
leader on one side gives the first letter of a word, not 
telling what the word is. The player on the other side 
adds a letter to it with also a word in mind, and so the 
players each add a letter, trying not to finish the word. 
If a player must finish a word he becomes a "ghost" 
and must take his seat. If one player thinks the speller 
before him had no word in mind he can challenge him 
to tell his word. If he had none he becomes a "ghost" 
and drops out. If he did have a word in mind and was 
spelling it correctly the challenger becomes a "ghost." 
The side left with the most players at the end of the 
period wins. This is a good sharpener for sluggish 
wits and the children enjoy it immensely. 

By giving as much study and thought to the spelling 
class as she does to any other subject any teacher can 
make it intensely pleasant and profitable to the pupils, 
and she will find that with proficiency in spelling will 
come increased ability in other subjects. 



LANGUAGE 



LANGUAGE LESSONS THAT LEAD THE 
CHILDREN TO TALK 

By Karriette Wilbur 

If the use of language lessons is to lead the children 
to express their thoughts in correct words and 
phrases, then by all means the first step is to get them 
to talk. I have used the following plan successfully. 

On Friday afternoon I announce the names of five 
children who are to give oral compositions the follow- 
ing week in the language lesson periods. The names 
are assigned in advance so that the talks will not be 
just scrappy, uninteresting sentences, but full of some 
interesting experience. If children are to talk well, 
they must have something to talk about. 

Monday, at the beginning of the language lesson, I 
ask which one of the five is prepared to make his little 
speech. If all volunteer, I choose the speaker for the 
day ; if none, I tell the class to put their heads down on 
the desks and be quiet for one minute while the five 
collect their thoughts, remember what happened over 
Saturday or Sunday, what they did, read, or heard 
about, or any experience that will make a good speech. 
However, the speaker of the day usually materializes 
at the first call, for children are always eager to talk. 
And how interested everybody is, including the teach- 
er, in the child's linguistic effort. 



LANGUAGE 193 

One little boy, who was selected from the volunteers 
because he seemed so extremely eager to tell his story, 
came forward, faced the children, and with glowing 
eyes began : "Listen while I tell you what I saw at the 
dog and pony show my grandfather took me to Satur- 
day." You may be sure that his theme occupied his 
full time. When he had finished there were many 
questions, which he answered as best he could. At this 
"free period" of a few minutes, those who had also at- 
tended the performance waved hands excitedly, wait- 
ing their turn to ask such questions as, "Do you re- 
member when the black dog caught the ball ?" "Yes, 
wasn't that done v/ell?" replied the speaker of the day. 

When Maggie's turn came to "make a speech," her 
theme was a description of the color and style of the 
new dress her mother was making for her. Selma 
once told us how she came to America, for the subjects 
are not limited to present time. A snow man the boys 
had made, a walk in the woods, a new play house, a 
trip uptown with Mother, a movie (though these are 
not permitted to monopolize the talks), a story Grand- 
mother read, a family picnic, a snowstorm, a wind- 
storm, and a rainbow were some of the selections 
made. 

One subject that was of keen interest v/as a hornets* 
nest which a boy brought to illustrate his speech, in 
which he described how he and his big brother had 
found it on a jaunt in the woods. Another boy told a 
story beginning, "Once upon a time my father — ," and 
a little Swedish girl gave a delightful story of when 
her grandmother was a little girl. Whatever has in- 
terested the child he can make sufficiently interesting 
for others. If a child appointed for the week fails to 
have anything interesting for his speech by Thursday 



194 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

evening, I give him a picture to study, so that he may 
prepare a description of it for his talk. 

I do not correct every httle error the children make 
in telling a story, but do take notes of gross offenses 
against grammar or good taste in phrases, and at the 
close of the lesson have the child repeat these corrected 
parts of his story. 

BETTER SPEECH STIMULATED BY 
POSTERS 

By Marjorie E. Chaffee 

A friend of mine who teaches English was very 
much discouraged when she first started her work, for 
the pupils used such incorrect English and so much 
slang. 

One evening she remarked, "I wish something could 
be done for those pupils which would arouse their in- 
terest and make them take more pride in their speech. 

After giving the problem considerable thought, she 
finally evolved the following plan. She told the pupils 
that they were to make posters forbidding the use of 
slang and bad English. 

First, they made rough sketches upon composition 
paper, which were handed in. Needed suggestions 
were offered and corrections made. Next, they were 
given sheets of green and gray drawing paper to use 
in making the posters. 

Some of the posters were excellent. One pupil drew 
at the top of the sheet a picture of the ocean with two 
ships upon it, one named "Slang" and the other "Good 
English." The ship Slang was being dashed to pieces 
on the rocks, while Good English was sailing safely 
along. Below were the words "Direct your course." 



LANGUAGE 195 

Another pupil made a drawing of a table with books 
upon it. The words on the poster read, "Become ac- 
quainted with good books." Still another poster con- 
sisted only of the words "Danger! Watch your 
speech !" 

A fourth poster, which carried the greatest appeal 
to the pupils, showed a drawing of an ornamental 
clock. Instead of having the hours marked upon it, 
the words, "First Grade, Second Grade," and so forth, 
were written in circular form upon the dial. The hour 
hand was shown pointing to the grade in which these 
pupils were, with the minute hand very nearly there. 
Below were the words, "Now is the time to watch your 
speech." 

The drawings were done with a pencil, and the writ- 
ing with pencil or pen. Some of the pupils cut large 
letters from newspapers and pasted them on the draw- 
ing paper. 

The posters were placed on the walls so that they 
would serve as constant reminders of the need for 
better speech. 

Another method of securing better results in cor- 
rect speaking was the "Incorrect English Box." A 
small wooden box with a slit in the top was placed 
near the door, so that it was within easy reach of the 
pupils when passing from the room. If a pupil heard 
someone make a mistake it was written on a small slip 
of paper, with the name of the person who had made 
the mistake and the one who had corrected it. At the 
€nd of a week the mistakes were counted. The names 
of the pupils were put on the front blackboard, with 
the number of errors which each had made and cor- 
rected. In this way great progress for better speech 
was achieved, and the pupils enjoyed the work. 



196 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

PUTTING PEP INTO AN ENGLISH LESSON 

By Lida C. Collins 

The writer has always felt that "pep" is an abbrevi- 
ated form of pepper, and that it bears the same rela- 
tion to a subject to which it is applied as the afore- 
mentioned condiment bears to a well-seasoned dish. 
It stimulates the appetite and adds to the flavor of the 
article in question. In short, a little "pep" is neces- 
sary to stimulate "literaiy digestion" and increase the 
desire for knowledge of any subject. 

Speaking seriously, it is an epitome of the American 
slogan, "Put energy behind your purpose." It might 
be called a composite of the three requisites of all good 
teaching, namely: 

Preparation 
jE'nthusiasm 
Presentation 

The first is an essential element. It is the reservoir 
of knowledge supplied by various channels, — study, 
travel, experience. The second is that vital spark, 
which gives the best of one's self to the project that 
means the uplifting of mankind. The third is the per- 
sonal touch that sets one man apart from another be- 
cause of his originality or uniqueness. Out of the 
abundance of the first and the fire of the second are 
wrought those skillful devices that constitute an apt 
presentation. 

To get away from the monotonous drill of mechan- 
ical English, yet to present the subject clearly and 
forcefully, has been a special problem for the writer. 
Many claim that grammar is lacking in interest, so we 
have contrived a few devices that have added some 



LANGUAGE 197 

fun to our recitation, yet brought comprehension as 
well. 

A glance out of a schoolroom window usually reveals 
some houses. These are our nouns and, like them, 
have various properties. Houses have roofs, windows, 
doors, stories, and so forth, just as nouns have gender, 
person, number, case. 

As a house may be a unique dwelling or one of a row 
of similar buildings, so nouns may be common or prop- 
er. As the houses may have different styles of roofs, 
so nouns may have different genders. 

The one-, two-, or three-story building corresponds 
with first, second, third person. 

The single house or apartment corresponds with the 
singular or plural number of nouns. Case, being the 
relation of nouns to other words in a sentence, may be 
likened to the position of houses in a block or street. 

The use of pronouns for the purpose of avoiding 
repetition may easily be shown. "Mary went with 
Mary's mother to visit Mary's friend and get the hat 
Mary had bought at Mary's uncle's store." Thus the 
definition of a pronoun is made plain, — just a word 
that stands for a noun. 

To us, the preposition is a grammatical "signboard." 
Just as a signboard points the distance in either direc- 
tion, so the preposition shows or points the relation 
between its object and some other word. 

The conjunction is a coupling pin, and we have a 
good time finding the cars to be coupled, for, as you 
know, the coordinate pin couples only similar kinds of 
cars. If you find one end linked with a word, phrase, 
or clause, then the other must be hooked to a similar 
word, phrase, or clause. An adjective car should never 
be coupled with a phrase or clause car. We use the 



198 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

subordinate coupler when we have a flat and a box car, 
namely, a principal and subordinate clause. 

When we learn the irregular verbs, our ball season 
opens. Tickets sell well. A column of some twenty 
verbs is assigned, together with some parsing or other 
work. The teacher, being the referee, starts the ball 
by naming a verb, and calling upon a pupil who stands, 
gives the principal parts, names another verb in the 
list, and calls upon another pupil who proceeds in the 
same manner. So the game goes. A failure is a foul 
and the referee quickly passes the ball to another, ask- 
ing that all be impartially included in the game. 

These are merely devices by which we make some 
facts plain to pupils, but the great aim of our lesson is 
to so apply our knowledge that we will endeavor to 
speak and write correctly. The use of excellent Eng- 
lish will become a thing on which we pride ourselves, 
and thus we will refrain from slang and endeavor to 
set a higher standard in the home and throughout the 
community. 

INTEREST AROUSED IN CORRECT 
SPEECH 

By- J. Haberle 

The following language game was originated for 
our "Better Speech" week. It has resulted in correct 
speech not only in the school but in the entire commu- 
nity, and it has given a great deal of pleasure to both 
the pupils and the teacher. For this reason it was not 
dropped, but has been used throughout the year. 

One thousand colored shoe pegs were purchased at a 
school supply house to be used as counters ; but beans, 
buttons, or toothpicks could be used as well. Ten pegs 



LANGUAGE 199 

are passed to each child every morning. During the 
day, at class, at recess, in speaking to teacher or pupil, 
if a certain grammatical error is heard, a peg is de- 
manded of the person making the mistake. Only one 
or two errors are remedied at a time and these are put 
upon the blackboard with the correct form following 
them. For instance, we started with those nightmares 
of the English language — ain't and got. Whenever 
these two words slipped out we were sure to hear at 
once, "Give me a peg." The one who was so unfortu- 
nate as to have made the error had to forfeit a peg. 
If two or more pupils hear an error and call for a peg 
at one and the same time it is a tie, of course, and no 
one receives a peg. 

At the close of school, pegs are counted, and the 
name of the pupil having the greatest number is post- 
ed on the bulletin board. The child having the highest 
average is the winner for the week and is given some 
special privilege. 

Imagine my joy upon finding that this game has 
spread to the homes and is being played there by fa- 
ther, mother, and grandparents with the children, us- 
ing beans or buttons for counters. If mother uses the 
word ain't while >vashing the dishes she forfeits a 
counter as readily as little Earl is expected to if he 
forgets and uses / have got. Are we not starting a 
community-wide interest in "Better Speech"? And 
since our corrections are being carried over into the 
home will they not be the more lasting? 

We add a new "error" as often as possible, so that 
we now have a long list of undesirables, such as : all 
the double negatives, / seen, Where is he at, and / done. 
We still retain the ones we started with, although it is 
seldom possible to catch anyone on ain't and got. 



200 PEPAGOGICAL PEP 

The game has never dulled and interest in it is still 
high, but if I perceive one or two pupils w^ho do not go 
after pegs with quite their normal zest or who do not 
seem to be listening for the errors as they should, I 
say, "We will keep our pegs for a week, with a special 
prize for the week's winner." The prize may be only a 
much-coveted privilege or an early dismissal. 

Many teachers will object to the corrections in 
class, fearing that disorder will result if the reciting 
pupil is interrupted in the midst of his recitation by, 
**You said 'seen.' Give me a peg." Those who fear 
this may eliminate it, but I have found that we can be 
back to the subject in a second; and, since constant 
watchfulness on the part of both speaker and auditors 
is what I want, I should not think of discontinuing the 
corrections during class. 

Do you not see that all of the corrections are coming 
from the pupils and not from that worn-out source, 
the teacher? Also the ears are being trained so that 
they feel the jar of a grammatical error, and you may 
be sure that after John has earned several pegs catch- 
ing his classmates saying his'n he will not be liable 
to make the same mistake himself. Then, too, it has 
brought about a realization of personal faults, and I 
often hear a child say, "I must break myself of saying 
*your'n.' " Let us make this a national game. 

THE RIGHT WORD IN THE RIGHT 
PLACE 

By Jean L. Gowdy 

"These grapes are luscious," said little Mary, at 
[whose home I had been invited to luncheon, as her 
mother passed them to her. 



LANGUAGE 201 

Her mother gave me a puzzled look, but I smiled re- 
assuringly. 

"Is this salad healthful, mother?" asked Mary when 
it was served. 

"I hope so," answered her mother. 

*'It certainly is very appetizing," continued Mary 
unconscious of her mother's worried and almost pa- 
thetic expression. 

When Mary had left the table and we were alone, 
her mother asked me if I were teaching Mary to use 
these words. She then said, "Mary often surprises me 
with this grown-up use of descriptive words and she 
seldom makes a mistake. It is sometimes almost un- 
canny in a child. Yesterday when I was sweeping she 
asked me if I did not think, 'an electric sweeper would 
be more convenient and labor-saving.' After her bath 
this morning she said she was 'much refreshed.' I am 
sorry to say this proper use of such words has not 
been learned from either her father or me. I am fre- 
quently chagrined by my use of the word nice in de- 
scribing almost everything, and her father is most apt 
in using slang in his descriptions. Mary has often 
made us realize our lack of a descriptive vocabulary. 

I suggested that she go back to school with Mary 
and me, and spend the afternoon in our room. This 
she did willingly. 

There was a large card standing on the chalk trough 
of the front blackboard. On this card was the picture 
of a smiling boy shoveling snow. Beneath the picture 
;were these words in large black letters: 



Healthy 


Helpful 


Industrious 


Cheerful 


Happy 


Energetic 


Merry 


Animated 


Vigorous 



202 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

I explained to Mary's mother that the card was to be 
used in the language lesson. 

I also showed her some of the cards we had already 
used. On one of these, marked No. 1, was the picture 
of a low table in what appeared to be a nursery. At 
one end of this table sat a boy and at the other a girl. 
The table was set in readiness for their supper which 
consisted of bread and milk. Below the picture were 
these words: 

Whole-wheat bread Milk 

Healthful Satisfying 

Refreshing Nourishing 
Appetizing 

Card No. 2, which had no words below, showed a 
large picture of father, mother, son, and daughter 
seated at a table. The meal seemed to consist of muf- 
fins, butter, cookies, and marmalade. 

The father was in the act of passing the muffins to 
the mother while the children waited with eagerness. 
I showed this card to the children before beginning 
the regular lesson, asking them for sentences regard- 
ing it. The following were given : 

"The family have bran muffins, butter, marmalade, 
and graham cookies for luncheon." 

"The luncheon is simple, but very satisfying." 
"The children are politely waiting to be served." 
"Bran muffins are healthful and nourishing." 
"Bran muffins with marmalade are appetizing." 
"After eating this luncheon the family will feel re- 
freshed." 

Occasionally I asked the children to explain their 
sentences. They understood the meaning of the words 
they used. 



LANGUAGE 203 

I then selected the picture of an interesting play 
room, and made the same request as before. The 
children readily responded. 

"This is a children's play room." 

"The play room is daintily furnished." 

"The children who play here are orderly." 

"The toys on the shelves are tastefully arranged." 

"The toys are in good repair." 

"The play room is neat and cheerful because it is 
orderly and well lighted." 

"I should enjoy playing in this room." 

I then turned to the card on the blackboard, and 
asked the children to tell me what the picture told 
them, using the words on the card that were familiar 
to them. Hands were at once raised. 

"The boy appears healthy." 

"The boy seems cheerful." 

"I think he is cheerful because he is laughing." 

"The boy is merry and happy." 

"He is merry and happy because he is helpful." 

Many other comprehensive sentences were given. 

"There is a new word here that means he is merry, 
lively, playful, cheerful, and perhaps frisky and spir- 
ited like a young animal. I wonder if you can tell me 
which word it is," I said. There was silence for a mo- 
ment, then "Animated," answered the children. The 
word was pronounced and spelled. 

"Tell me why you think this boy is animated," I said. 

"I think he is animated because he enjoys his work," 

"I think he is animated because the air is cold and 
bracing and he feels lively." 

"He feels animated because his work is like play." 

"He is animated because he feels like a playful 
kitten." 



204 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

After each child had given a sentence using this 
word I was obliged to conclude the lesson for the day, 
telling the children to be thinking of other sentences 
in which this word could be used, to use the word at 
home, and among themselves. "It is your own word 
now," I added. 

"Are you satisfied?" I asked the mother. 

"Yes, and no," she answered. "I am glad my little 
daughter is having such excellent training in school, 
but I am ashamed that her home training has been 
neglected in this direction. My husband and I must 
henceforth make ourselves helpful to her. I wonder 
if I could assist her by making some of these charts at 
home. Where do you get these colored pictures?" 

"I find most of them on the advertising pages of our 
leading magazines," I replied, "and the descriptive 
words are suggested by the pictures. I am careful to 
select pictures that are simple enough to speak for 
themselves and in which the colors are in good taste. 
Another requisite of the pictures is that they show 
well ordered and moderate life. 

"May I visit you often ? I need your help," said the 
mother. 

"As often as you like. I am sure we will be mutual- 
ly helpful," I replied. 

THE THREE TYPES OF LETTERS 

By Sara V. Prueser 

Everybody writes letters. So it is absolutely im- 
perative that everyone learn how to write good letters. 
To get good results in letter writing, the work must be 
made practical. The pupil must be taught how to dis- 
tinguish a good letter from a poor one. In order to do 



LANGUAGE 205 

this, he must have some good examples shown and 
read to him. 

All letters naturally belong to one of the following 
types: the newsy, commonplace type, the intellectual 
type, the formal type. 

Let us begin with the newsy, commonplace type of 
letter that comes to every home. It may be a very 
good one or a very poor one. Start the discussion by 
asking the pupils about the letters they receive from 
friends and relatives. In response to your questioning 
John will probably say that they had a letter from 
Cousin Ann last week, and that it was a good letter. 
Then follow up with some such suggestive questions as 
these : "Was the news or information definite and com- 
plete? Did Cousin Ann tell all you wanted to know 
about the news? Did the letter seem abrupt in style, 
with just a sentence or two on a subject? Was the let- 
ter kind and cheerful, or was it doleful and depress- 
ing? How did the letter make you feel?" 

These questions are likely to call forth some such 
answers as the following: 

"Yes, the news was interesting. She told us all 
about herself and her family and what they were do- 
ing. She doesn't write short, patchy letters like Cousin 
Jane, who doesn't say anything. All we know about 
Cousin Jane is that she is alive and well. Cousin Ann's 
letters always make us feel good. She has a funny 
way of telling things. I don't know why, but every 
time I get a letter from her I can work better in 
school." 

By a continued discussion of such letters you can de- 
velop the facts that a social or newsy letter, to be 
good, should be interesting and contain definite and 
complete information on the subjects written about; 



206 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

that it should be cheerful, witty, humorous; and that 
it should be inspirational. 

Begin the work in social letter writing by assigning 
some subject to each pupil. Suit the subject to the pu- 
pil. Let it be the one in which he is most interested. 
This will largely prevent the monotonous phrasing 
found in most letters. A few of the subjects that may 
be suggested are: A Basket Ball Game I Attended; 
How I Made a Moving Picture Machine for Showing 
Post Cards; How My Course in Domestic Science 
Helped Mother; My Trip to Washington. 

I have found the following plan to be very helpful in 
getting good letters from the older pupils, for it de- 
velops the faculties of observation and imagination 
in the writer. Let each pupil imagine himself to be a 
representative for some American business house, or 
some large manufacturing firm or establishment, in a 
foreign country. Then have him write a letter home 
telling of his travels and his experiences in getting 
the people of that country interested in the goods of 
the firm he represents. The pupils will need to do 
some real research work in order to write on the sub- 
jects. 

For the intellectual type of letter which is often an 
essay or an editorial, read to them, or better yet, have 
them read the letters of John Burroughs, Henry van 
Dyke, and Theodore Roosevelt. I mention these be- 
cause each one of them stands for some particular type 
of character in American life. Emphasize the fact 
that the letters of these men are now embodied in our 
very best books of American literature. From this 
fact the children will come to know that a good in- 
formative letter may be a good essay and worth pre- 
serving. 



LANGUAGE 207 

The formal type of letter is not so difficult to write, 
for the formal note and the business letter usually fol- 
low certain prescribed forms to which the writer ad- 
heres more or less closely. These forms may be found 
in any good textbook on English. After a study of 
them show the pupils some announcements of mar- 
riages, letters of condolence, formal invitations to 
parties, dances, and luncheons. Then have the pupils 
write several of each particular form. 

In teaching the writing of the business letter the pu- 
pils' attention must be called to the following impor- 
tant facts. It should be brief. The personal tone 
should be almost entirely eliminated, except when it is 
written for advertising purposes. Since, in most 
cases, the business letter is written to get or to give 
information it should be clear and definite on the sub- 
ject treated. It should be correct in every detail; in 
arrangement, use of capitals, and punctuation. 

LETTER WRITING LINKS OUR SCHOOL 
WITH THE OUTSIDE WORLD 

By" Frederick H. Spinney 

In my early teaching days, whenever I suggested 
writing letters in school there ensued forty distinct 
varieties of groans, and there appeared on young fore- 
heads forty formidable frowns, all differing in length 
and breadth of furrow. Following this, came a cho- 
rus of, "I don't know what to write !" 

Naturally my enthusiasm was thus so thoroughly 
quenched that the letter-writing lesson was invariably 
a dismal failure. 

In my intercourse with my fellow creatures, I have 
observed that, while nine people in ten like to receive 



208 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

letters, not one in ten finds any pleasure in writing 
them. This refers to adults — a species of humanity 
which has the audacity to assume the function of in- 
structing the young in this undesirable exercise. 

If adults thus manifest a distaste for writing let- 
ters, even when they realize that the receipt will be a 
source of pleasure to others, is it not the very height 
of folly to expect children to find pleasure in writing 
letters which they know are destined for the scrap 
basket? 

Yet it took me two years to convince myself that I 
was uncomfortably perched on that very height of 
folly; and that thousands of my fellow workers were 
also perched thereon. 

One evening, following a letter-writing lesson, when 
the chorus of groans and the forty furrowed brows 
were painfully vivid in my recollection, an interroga- 
tion somehow penetrated my new-idea-proof cranium. 
Why not ask the pupils to write real letters to real 
live boys and girls? 

I could scarcely await the next letter-writing peri- 
od. In fact, I found an excuse to assign the lesson two 
days in advance of the regular day. Just previous to 
the noon dismissal, I talked to the class somewhat as 
follows : 

"There are boys and girls in England who know 
very little about our country and perhaps never heard 
of our little town. I think it would be a good idea to 
write letters, telling them about its location, surround- 
ings, the occupation of the people, the products, our 
homes, our gardens, our pets, our games, the books we 
like, and perhaps little journeys we have made to other 
towns, and asking them to answer our letters, telling 
us about their homes." 



LANGUAGE 209 

In place of groans and frowns, there were smiling 
nods of approval and many questions. 

"May we have answers sent to our own addresses ?" 

"May we write what we like?" 

"Must we write the letters over?" 

Here was the first fundamental of a successful les- 
son — enthusiastic interest on the part of teacher and 
pupils. 

The letters were to be written in the afternoon, and 
each pupil was to bring one cent to pay for paper and 
postage. We decided to select three towns in three 
parts of England, and send the letters in three large 
envelopes. 

The topics were written on the blackboard in their 
most natural order, each pupil to choose the topics he 
liked, or originate his own. I offered the following 
suggestions. If you are in doubt about how to spell a 
word, ask for the correct spelling. Complete one topic 
before beginning the next. Do not use "and" where it 
may be omitted. 

All the pupils wrote with eager interest. On the 
following day I read aloud the best letters, omitting 
the names of the writers, and explained why I con- 
sidered those letters the best. All the letters were 
mailed without rewriting. Try rewriting your own 
letters. How do you like it? We should frequently 
try on ourselves some of the tortures we inflict on the 
children. Such a practice will make us richer in pa- 
tience and sympathy. 

Before the answers came from England, a batch of 
letters was sent to California, and another to Austra- 
lia. Previous to each lesson, all the words misspelled 
in former letters were written on the blackboard. 
When a pupil asked for the correct spelling of a word, 



210 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

that word was written for the benefit of all. At the 
beginning of each lesson, special attention was given 
to one particular feature of composition. That is pro- 
ductive of better results than attempting to apply a 
number of rules at each lesson. 

Then came the answers to the first letters. The ex- 
citement is better imagined than described. The pu- 
pils brought the letters to school, and I asked permis- 
sion to retain them until the next letter-writing day, 
when I read the best ones aloud. 

Later we wrote to India, New Zealand, and New- 
foundland. From a Girls' Mission School in India we 
received very interesting letters; they were also very 
amusing, as the young writers — Hindu girls just 
learning English — misplaced their adverbs and prepo- 
sitions. 

To further add to the interest, many of the best let- 
ters written and received were published in the local 
weekly newspaper; and clippings were always sent 
to the young writers in the distant schools. It is a 
source of inspiration to a child to see his or her orig- 
inal work in print. 

In undertaking such a letter exchange, it is well to 
have the periods once a week for three weeks; then 
once a fortnight, as many of the pupils keep up a cor- 
respondence at home with the first boys and girls from 
whom they receive letters. That should be encour- 
aged. One father told me that he never knew his two 
boys to be so much interested in geography as they 
were immediately after beginning the letter exchange, 
and then he added, "My oldest boy is now correspond- 
ing with five boys of his own age in different parts of 
the world. He reads aloud to his mother and me all 
his own letters and all the answers." Thus does the 



LANGUAGE 211 

letter exchange secure the helpful cooperation of the 
parents. 

If the rewriting of the letters is made optional, a 
number of pupils will ask permission to rewrite them, 
particularly when their ambition has been aroused by 
reading the published letters. These pupils have 
then reached a very desirable attitude. 

Any teacher who adopts this method of securing in- 
terest in letter writing will be highly gratified with 
the results. 

CORRESPONDENCE WITH ANOTHER 
SCHOOL MOTIVATES LETTER WRITING 

By~ Nettie A. Selkirk 

Letter writing is an accomplishment, the value of 
which can scarcely be overestimated. Much of one's 
success in life depends on his ability to write clear, 
correct, forceful letters. Because of the great need 
and worth of this art, it should be given a very prom- 
inent place in the school curriculum. 

A great many of our pupils leave school at the end 
of the sixth year. Consequently, it is very essential 
that they shall be given much instruction and prac- 
tical experience in both social and business letter writ- 
ing throughout the primary and intermediate grades. 

Our school is a small ungraded rural school located 
in the mountains of the Adirondacks. My pupils cor- 
respond regularly with the pupils of a small country 
school in the southern part of the state, writing about 
four letters during the year. 

The teacher of the other school is a personal friend 
and correspondent of mine. It occurred to us that an 
exchange of letters between our pupils might prove of 



212 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

great advantage and, at the same time, add variety 
and interest to school vi^ork. The children readily be- 
came interested in the plan and the letter program was 
at once instituted. 

I wish you could see the interest and enthusiasm in 
the faces of my children when the letters, which they 
have been so eagerly expecting, arrive. But now 
comes the part which they enjoy most of all — ^the an- 
swering of these letters. This is accomplished as a 
part of the regular English work. All of the children 
down to and including those in the last half of the first 
year have a part in this. We have a round table and 
discuss freely the letters received. We note any ques- 
tions asked, comment on items of news and informa- 
tion, and call attention to interesting bits of descrip- 
tion. Following this we plan the answers. The chil- 
dren suggest many things to write about ; such as, the 
beautiful scenery of our mountains, lakes, and wood- 
lands at the various seasons; animal and plant life, 
particularly the birds and the wild flowers; local in- 
dustries and activities; important incidents and 
events; their school and home life and interests, in- 
cluding their pets. There is always such a super- 
abundance of interesting material that it is difficult to 
draw the line and decide what must be left out. 

The letters are then written, giving the most care- 
ful attention to both grammatical and mechanical de- 
tails, the while remembering that letters must be in- 
teresting and entertaining to be enjoyed. The chil- 
dren's eagerness to excel their classmates and their cor- 
respondents stimulates them to put forth most vigorous 
efforts, and letters of real merit result. 

As our children, at present, are all in the fourth 
grade or below, only a very little work is being done 



LANGUAGE 213 

in the writing of invitations, acceptances, regrets and 
so forth. 

For business practice, they write postal cards or 
brief letters courteously requesting copies of circulars, 
bulletins, seed and picture catalogues, and other mat- 
ter listed for free distribution, all of which we use in 
connection with our school work. Again, they write 
postal cards or short i^indly letters of thanks for ma- 
terial received. They also write letters and orders for 
school supplies. Occasions for communications of this 
sort are numerous, and we utilize them for a double 
purpose. The best letter is always selected for mailing. 

I have found this a very attractive and effectual 
method of teaching letter writing. The children are 
enthusiastic over the work. The days on which we 
write letters are their "red letter days." The work is 
a pleasure to them and to me. 

The knowledge, experience, and skill they acquire 
by thus actually writing real letters should prove an 
asset of inestimable value throughout their entire 
lives. 

SPONTANEOUS EXPRESSION ESSENTIAL 
TO GOOD COMPOSITIONS 

By~ Louise Montgomery 

In my childhood the writing of compositions was the 
bane of my existence. I recall the half -audible groans 
that escaped from the grade whenever the teacher an- 
nounced that we were nearing the end of the month 
and compositions must be ready for the following Fri- 
day afternoon exercises. We used to stop after school 
and meekly ask her what we should write about. Pa- 
tiently and sweetly she suggested subjects: Persever- 



214 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

ance, Honesty, Love for Parents, The History of Print- 
ing, The Invention of the Cotton-Gin. We wrote them 
down. Then we went home and pestered the life out 
of our parents for the remaining days, but received 
only similar suggestions. Somehow we usually man- 
aged to round up the week with something that would 
pass for a composition. After the ordeal was over we 
rejoiced in three weeks of blessed freedom until we 
had to be goaded and threatened into another eflfort. 

The subjects which were suggested were unrelated 
to anything that seemed real in our lives. We were 
as a group fairly honest and would have resented 
any suggestions to the contrary, but that idea alone 
failed to fill the pages. We had the normal love for 
parents without analysis of the feeling. We cared lit- 
tle for perseverance ; and to get a knowledge of either 
the printing-press or the cotton-gin we had to read too 
many pages from the heavy encyclopedia, and most of 
the matter was beyond our understanding. With this 
lack of interest in the subject the compositions were 
worthless even from the standpoint of discipline in 
sentence and paragraph construction, because all ex- 
pression was so forced, stilted, and unnatural. 

The recollections of my painful efforts provided me 
with an incentive to search for new methods of ap- 
proach to this dreaded subject when I reached the 
teacher's chair. I made a discovery. Nobody writes a 
composition that has value of any kind whatsoever 
until he writes voluntarily on a subject that fills him 
with interest, and that so expands his being with the 
need of telling about it that he cannot escape expres- 
sion. Children of all ages will talk about anything that 
has made an appeal to them. When talk of this kind is 
transferred to paper the fundamental, vital require- 



LANGUAGE 215 

ment of a good composition is met, and it matters not 
at all how many words may be misspelled, how few 
and far between are the punctuation marks, how often 
the plural subjects unite with singular verbs. These 
points that may be grouped under the laws of correct 
English are but the trimmings of a garment. They 
are indicative of culture, refinement, good taste, order, 
form, and an artistic sense of values, not by any means 
to be despised but never under any circumstances to be 
made the objective point and emphasized as such. 
They must follow, not lead. By a curious paradox 
whenever a misguided teacher places the details of 
correct expression as the chief requirement of a good 
composition she loses even those points for which she 
is so conscientiously striving. To begin with the let- 
ter, and not the spirit of good composition, is to put 
the whole subject on a wrong foundation, thereby in- 
hibiting spontaneous expression, the foundation with- 
out which nothing worthy can be made. 

Having arrived at my theory I tested it for the first 
time in a sixth grade. I invited the entire group to go 
with me and have a Saturday picnic on the banks of 
the Mississippi River. We did not talk school. We 
had a real picnic. Later I called for compositions on 
any part of that picnic about which they chose to 
write. I even said that all who did not have a good 
time need not tell about it. That was a little unsafe 
but it worked. I did not care in this first venture 
whether they wrote about the lunch, the sandwiches, 
the bottle of pickles that rolled down the bank, or the 
wonderful walk through the ravine from the river to 
the lake where we found the bittersweet berries just 
bursting their outer shells. No subjects were assigned 
and no requirements were made as to the number of 



216 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

pages. There was no mention of grammatical rules or 
the need of getting more than seventy-five per cent in 
order "to pass." 

Those compositions were read and discussed from 
two points only, accuracy of observation and the way 
each one did or did not make the rest of us see what 
the writer had seen. Many a child saw where he had 
fallen short and was eager to stand up and tell orally 
what he meant to write. The oral expression was 
granted as a means to a clearer understanding of what 
the next composition must contain. This method was 
followed for six weeks with varying subjects all based 
on direct contact with something about the town ; the 
fire department, the shoemaker, the gipsy camp, the 
chair factory, the county fair, and the new public laun- 
dry, the first the town had seen. Spontaneous expres- 
sion of something actually seen and enjoyed in the 
seeing did much to destroy the old inhibitions en- 
gendered by dread and fear. When these were out of 
the way we began on the details, taking up one point 
at a time, always and insistently showing punctuation, 
arrangement of phrases, all the rules of grammar as a 
means to a wonderful end, namely, making other peo- 
ple see and enjoy what we had seen and enjoyed. Was 
not the end and aim worth a little study and hard 
work? 

I have followed the same methods in other grades. 
In all cases the subjects in the beginning must be se- 
lected just as the children selected theirs at that first 
picnic. The wisdom of the teacher must be shown in 
enough understanding of her group to either person- 
ally conduct or to direct attention to something easily 
accessible and bound to enlist the attention of the dull- 
est mind. I have found that I must give the start. 



LANGUAGE 217 

There are few self-starters in this world ; but the ma- 
jority of my pupils have learned to get up their own 
excursions, and to look for new places of interest, 
either alone or with others. Even those who have 
lagged behind have developed a mental quickening 
without which I know I could have extracted nothing 
from them worthy the name of composition. 

At this point I know some one may say that I will 
find only description and narration resulting from this 
method. This is true in the beginning but the skillful 
teacher need not stop there. Children will uncon- 
sciously begin to make their own original observations 
if encouraged to do so. I have had imaginative tales, 
meditative discourse, abstract essays and dramatic 
dialogues spring from many pupils at the end of a year 
or two of such work, following the law of natural 
growth in expression from the primitive narration of 
the savage to the highly developed literature of the 
civilized man. This has been my experience. It has 
also been the experience of others who have realized 
that in order to secure good composition a mental 
quickening, resulting in enthusiastic, spontaneous ex- 
pression, must precede the study of form and method. 



USE OF THE DICTIONARY 



INTRODUCING THE DICTIONARY 

By" Florence R. Jordan 

Dictionaries, as a rule, are put into the hands of the 
pupils in the fourth grade. However, before passing 
out the books, I have found it beneficial to review the 
alphabet, which is placed at the top of the blackboard. 
To do this have the pupils start at any given letter and 
finish the list ; then ask what letter follows a given let- 
ter, as for example r, and see who can answer first 
without going back to a, or referring to the black- 
board. While the majority of the children can do this 
easily, a few will find it difficult. They may look at the 
blackboard when necessary, as the alphabet is there 
the entire year to give the correct form for both cap- 
itals and small letters. 

When the order of the letters is well known, I ask 
the pupils to copy the alphabet on the left side of a 
sheet of ruled paper, putting one letter in each space. 
Let them think of words which begin with a. Tell 
them to write these words on the line with a. Take b 
next; and in like manner the entire alphabet. This 
work can be done in connection with the spelling les- 
son, giving only ten or fifteen minutes a day to it if the 
program is very full. When the papers are finished, 
with at least one word for the more difficult letters, 
explain that the dictionary is made on the same plan. 



USE OF THE DICTIONARY 219 

The next step is to pass the dictionaries to the pupils 
and let them look at them. They enjoy finding the 
pages where each letter starts and will often check the 
alphabet on their papers as they work. They soon see 
that the words under each letter are in turn alphabet- 
ically arranged in regard to the second and third let- 
ters, and so forth. 

Children are much more interested in finding famil- 
iar words at first. I like to ask for names of animals, 
because pictures illustrating them are usually given. 
Definitions are often beyond the little child's compre- 
hension, but pictures are always plain. 

Suppose we were going to find the word beaver. 
Before anyone starts an aimless search, ask the fol- 
lowing questions : 

"Under what letter will it come? Where will we 
find 6? Will beaver be among the first words begin- 
ning with b ? Where will you look ? How many have 
found it? How many have not ? Mary, what is at the 
top of your page?" If Mary finds the syllables bal and 
bam at the top of the page, explain what they are for. 
Ask the class which way the pages should be turned 
from bam to find beaver. Go slowly; give examples 
yourself, such as : "My book is open at the page headed 
by feel and feme. I wish to find the word fox. Which 
way shall I turn the pages to find it ? Why ?" Be sure 
each one understands what he is doing. Time spent in 
this way at first is saved later on. 

When words can be found independently, place two 
or three on the board each day for the children to look 
up. These words may be taken from the reading, 
spelling, or geography work, and should have at least 
something in the definition that they can understand. 
It is not necessary for the pupils to copy the definition. 



220 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

but it is well to ask that the page where the word was 
found be marked down on the paper beside the word, 
and under that a sentence be written using it, as : 

mink — page 5J/.0 

I saiv a mink near a stream of water. 
At a regular time on the program these sentences 
should be read aloud by the children. 

In a short time the pupils may make their own selec- 
tion of words to find in the dictionary. They like to do 
it, and it makes a variety of sentences to be read. The 
only restriction that need be made is that the words 
found must have some connection with the work of the 
day. As they read their sentences the pupils may tell 
from which lesson they took the words. 

SYSTEMATIZED INSTRUCTION IN 
DICTIONARY USE 

By" Emma Boiler 

Pupils, as a rule, do not like to look up the meaning 
or pronunciation of words — and no wonder, for many 
of them do not know how to find a word in the diction- 
ary. To such pupils the task is akin to that of hunting 
a needle in a haystack. 

The first step in learning to use the dictionary is to 
learn the letters of the alphabet in their order. The 
children should be able to repeat the alphabet as rap- 
idly as they count. Facility in finding words depends 
upon their ability to do this. 

Practice in finding given words is the next step. 
Each pupil should have a dictionary for this drill, but 
any alphabetical vocabulary will do if necessary. 
Something of this kind may be found at the end of the 
reader, or in the glossary at the end of the geography. 



USE OF THE DICTIONARY 221 

But let us suppose that each pupil has a dictionary. 
With their dictionaries on their desks before them, let 
the teacher call the attention of her pupils to the fact 
that all words beginning with the letter a come first in 
the book, that they are followed by those beginning 
with h, and that these are followed by words beginning 
with the letter c, and so forth, in alphabetical order. 

Point out the fact that all words beginning with the 
letter I are approximately in the middle of the book; 
practice turning to this section of words until the pu- 
pils can turn readily to I words in the dictionary. Now 
point out thatiiwords beginning with letters that come 
before the letter i^ in the alphabet must necessarily be 
looked for in the first half of the book, and that words 
beginning with letters that come after I are found in 
the last half of the dictionary. Drill them in turning 
to words beginning with such letters as I, g, t, until 
they have gained some speed in locating the places 
where words beginning with certain letters may be 
found. 

Let the pupils open their dictionaries at the letter I 
in order to proceed to find the word label, which 
should be written on the blackboard. Call their atten- 
tion to the fact that the first words under I begin with 
la. Tell them to run a finger down the column until 
they find the word label, saying nothing about the 
third letter yet. In their haste many pupils will pass 
over it and have to go back ; have them practice until 
they can stop when they come to the word. It is better 
to go slowly at first than to waste time in going over 
the ground again. 

Now let the dictionaries be closed and take another 
word in I — labor. Follow with lack, lad, lag, lamp, 
land, lap, lark, last, laugh, lax, lay, etc. (all beginning 



222 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

with la) . Each time the pupils should turn to the be- 
ginning of I and run down the columns until they reach 
the word looked for. Almost immediately, however, 
some will take notice of the third letter in the word 
and skip the first columns and look to the end of the 
la's to find the desired word more quickly. 

Take the word lea; let them look up lead, leaf, leak, 
lean, learn, least. By this time the pupils should have 
noticed that the fourth letter in the word is also in al- 
phabetical order. To fix this fact firmly in their minds 
place a list of words beginning with the same letter on 
the board and let the pupils arrange them in alpha- 
betical order. Probably they will make some errors at 
first, but this is good practice and should be continued 
for several days. Use lists of short words first, then 
longer ones. 

When the pupils have learned all this, explain the 
use of the key words at the top of each page ; that the 
one at the left is the first word on the page, and that 
the one at the right is the last word on the page. Drill 
them in the use of these key words so that they may 
see how much time is saved by using them. 

To quicken interest in looking up words, contests 
may be held to see who is first and second in finding a 
given word. 

When the pupils have acquired some facility in find- 
ing words, the teacher should call their attention to 
what follows the word when found — its pronunciation, 
derivation, and definition. The first thing that follows 
a word is a key to its pronunciation, either by means 
of diacritical markings or phonetic respelling. The 
part of speech is indicated by small letters (usually 
italics) used as abbreviations, as n. for noun, v. for 
verb, a. for adjective. It will interest many of the pu- 



USE OF THE DICTIONARY 223 

pils to learn that most words are derived from roots in 
foreign languages, L. indicating Latin, Gr. Greek, F. 
French, and so forth. 

Impress on the pupils the necessity of having the 
correct spelling of a word in mind before attempting 
to find it in the dictionary ; many a fruitless search for 
a word is due to having the wrong spelling in mind. 

Comment on the fact that finding words in the dic- 
tionary with facility is a valuable accomplishment 
which the pupils will use throughout life in the course 
of their study, reading, and writing; that the diction- 
ary is a guide and teacher in self-education ; and that 
its use should become a habit. Point out that the dic- 
tionary is a book of useful facts, and a friendly aid to 
the reader, scholar, editor, writer, teacher, and stenog- 
rapher. Tell the pupils that the card catalogue, the 
encyclopedia, and reference books are used like the 
dictionary. 

Dictionary work should be required of all pupils 
above the fifth grade, and the teacher should encour- 
age them to consult it freely upon their own initiative. 

EXIT "MRS. MALAPROP" 

B/" Martha E. Bonham 

If there were storehouses containing a never ending 
supply of riches as accessible as the comer gasoline 
stations, to which one could go and take freely as much 
as he desired, how many would be poor? Yet think 
what a wealth of words lies within the reach of all, 
and still so many are poverty stricken in language. 

One of my hobbies is to induce pupils to add new 
:words to their vocabularies. Before stating any re- 
quirements I endeavor to impress two important facts 



224 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

upon the minds of the pupils : first, that the ability of 
a person to grasp quickly the content of what he reads 
depends upon his understanding of words; second, 
that an idea can be expressed in many ways, but in 
varying degrees of effectiveness. Pupils like dennite- 
ness. Failure is so often due to vague assignments. 

In order that the dictionary habit be foraied, some 
of the laws of habit formation must be put into prac- 
tice. Regularity is essential. I require my students 
to keep a vocabulary notebook. Every day they are 
expected to add at least two words to their vocabu- 
laries. These words they select from their geography, 
history, or reading lesson. The idea is not to choose 
the longest or the most difficult words, but the most 
usable ones. 

Before a word can truly be said to be a part of one's 
vocabulary, one must be able to spell and pronounce it 
correctly, to have a clear understanding of its mean- 
ing, and to use it effectively in a sentence. In the note- 
book the pupils write the word, the definition, and an 
original illustrating sentence. The sentence is the 
true test of the pupil's knowledge of the word. I fre- 
quently devote a part of the recitation period to a dis- 
cussion of these "vocabulary words." 

The remark that I do not want any Mrs. Malaprops, 
arouses their curiosity. I then tell them how this 
woman in Sheridan's play, "The Rivals," makes her- 
self a ridiculous and comic character by the incorrect 
use of long words. The confusing of contagious and 
contiguous, orthodoxy and orthography, are repre- 
sentative examples. 

I encourage the pupils to practise their new words 
on their classmates and members of their families. 
One boy became intensely interested in word study. 



USE OF THE DICTIONARY 225 

In three years' time I watched his vocabulary grow. 
Into his conversation as well as into his oral and writ- 
ten themes, there gradually crept a diversified diction. 
"The biggest thing we can do for another," said 
Hugh Black, "is simply to open a door, or rather to 
show him where the door is open, out to a larger 
knowledge, a broader sympathy, a fuller life. This 
alone is education." The dictionary habit is the key 
that will unlock doors leading to immense literary 
treasures. Every teacher can help her pupils acquire 
the key. 



MUSIC 



GOOD RESULTS OBTAINED IN MUSIC 
IN THE FIRST AND SECOND GRADES 

By Nora E. Ungles 

I am not musical, yet feel that I have been successful 
in teaching music. We sometimes teach more success- 
fully that which we know the least about. Realizing 
our shortcoming, we put forth the most effort on that 
particular subject. When I began teaching in the pri- 
mary department, the music was the one big thing 
which confronted me. The want of confidence in my- 
self to sing alone the most simple song was a great 
hindrance. 

After carefully committing to memory a few songs 
which should be taught the first day of school, I make 
a plan for presenting them. The first step is to get the 
children to express themselves freely in speech as well 
as song. Therefore, I select a song which is of much 
interest to them, as "Here's a Ball for Baby." I talk 
to them about the baby at home, his name, his gifts, 
and so forth. Home is yet the big thought of their 
hearts. After they have talked with me about baby, I 
tell them that I know a delightful little song which I 
am sure they would like to sing — ^which tells of many 
presents the baby at home would like. 

We learn the song by rote, one phrase at a time. 
First, we commit the words; then I sing the phrase, 



MUSIC 227 

and the pupils must whisper it. In this way they get 
the tune fixed in their minds. We repeat this three or 
four times before they sing the phrase aloud. We con- 
tinue thus throughout the song, using our fingers for 
expression. 

After the children learn a few songs well I allow 
them to keep time by tapping with pencil or finger tips 
on the desk. This aids in teaching rhythm and time. 
I also allow them to pretend to play different musical 
instruments, singing different syllables to express 
tone, as — la, ha, ho, and so forth. If the children play 
that they are using a slide trombone they take the 
proper position and pretend that they are going 
through the correct motions. This is very effective, 
and other instruments may be used with the same 
pleasing results. 

The children also march by different tunes which 
part of the children play on imaginary drums. Some- 
times they all keep time on drums, using fists for 
imaginary drum sticks, and saying: 'Thrum, thrum; 
thrum, thrum, thrum" in place of "Left, right; left, 
right, left." 

I teach the meaning of solo, duet, trio, and quartet 
by having the children group themselves and sing the 
proper parts. The braver ones are always willing to 
sing the solos. This helps to form that independence 
so essential to singing. 

I am able to teach from ninety to one hundred new 
songs each year. The second-grade teacher plays the 
piano, of which we have the use for fifteen minutes 
each day, and I lead. Since we have worked together 
for three years we understand each other thoroughly 
and are able to accomplish a great deal. The results 
have been very gratifying. 



228 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

HOW I TAUGHT THIRD-GRADE MUSIC 
WITHOUT A SUPERVISOR 

By~ Catherine E. Jaynes 

After accepting the position to teach the third grade 
in a certain school I found that the state course of 
study included public school music. I learned also that 
this particular school could not afford a music super- 
visor. Aside from the course which I had in public 
school music when I was preparing to teach, I knew 
little about the subject. I have a keen sense of rhythm, 
which together with my genuine love for any kind of 
work with children gave me a starting point. There 
were thirty-five children between eight and twelve 
years of age in my grade. None of them had ever 
studied music in school. 

We had a music recitation of twenty minutes three 
times a week. I made it the last recitation in the after- 
noon. I like this plan because it sends the children 
away in a happy and enthusiastic frame of mind. 

For our first lesson we learned to sing "Peter, Peter, 
Pumpkin Eater." This seems to me to be one of the 
best songs for beginners. They like to sing it, and the 
teacher can easily emphasize rhythm and tone. There 
are so many ways to express rhythm that I need not 
dwell on them. The one we used most was tapping the 
desk with the forefinger. 

I insisted that each child make an attempt to sing 
and mark time. To accomplish this I divided the room 
into sections or rows, changing from day to day. We 
learned the songs by phrases. I sang the first phrase 
with each section until they could sing it without my 
help. Then all the children sang it together. After 
this, we began the second phrase in the same way. 



MUSIC 229 

Here was my chance to teach the children to be alert. 
For instance, I would ask section one to sing the first 
phrase, section two the second, and vice versa ; then all 
together. Next, I would ask section three to sing the 
first phrase, section four the second, and vice versa; 
and then all together. The children were soon so eager 
and alert that we could sing the song through in this 
fashion and never lose a count. 

Dividing the class into groups and learning the song 
by phrases secures attention and alertness, and enables 
the teacher to study the children individually. If I 
found pupils who were timid and slow to take part I 
placed them near those who were quick to respond. I 
would ask them to sing with one who was especially 
strong, and then with me until all were taking part. 
If one had difficulty in learning the air, I would sing 
with him over and over, sometimes dwelling on one 
word until his voice was in accord with mine. It is 
surprising how quickly and how well children learn to 
sing a song by these methods and, what is best, how 
much they enjoy it. 

For our second lesson we reviewed the song. I was 
pleased to note how eagerly the children took hold of it 
and how well they sang it. Then we began working on 
the scale. I employed the same method here that I 
used in teaching the song. While the children were 
learning the scale they were also studying new songs, 
but very short and simple ones. 

Later in the course we learned how to make the staff, 
the letters on the staff, the measure, and so on, until the 
children could read and write four line melodies. With 
this we began notebook work. I gave the children a 
great deal of personal help, emphasizing neatness. I 
required them to memorize the music to some of the 



230 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

songs they sang. This did not prove difficult. They 
were soon able to go to the board and write the music 
to certain melodies. I often asked two children to 
write the first measure of a song on the board and two 
other pupils the last measure. We also often sang 
from memory. Then we began to compose little melo- 
dies. This was exceedingly interesting work for the 
children. 

Each recitation we reviewed some work and started 
a new song, if the children were ready, always em- 
phasizing rhythm, alertness, and tone. Children can 
be taught to express rhythm without being noisy. 
They can be taught to sing with force without scream- 
ing. The influence of the teacher's attitude and per- 
sonality is very apparent here. If she is mild and pa- 
tient and controls her voice she will have little diffi- 
culty in controlling the children. I used this exercise 
often: "Sing first phrase gently, second with volume, 
third gently, fourth with volume." Of course, the 
songs we used gave opportunity for practice in con- 
trolling the voice. The sleepy songs are easily sung 
softly while the soldier songs, marching songs, and 
others require forceful singing. 

By the end of the term the children were able to sing 
fifty rote songs, had learned the scale, how to make the 
staff, the letters on the staff, and the measure, could 
read whole and half notes, and could compose and write 
two line melodies. Some of the children could write 
little rhymes to sing to the music they composed. The 
children had a remarkable sense of rhythm and a fair 
control of their voices. 

To hold the children's attention in these exercises 
the teacher must be filled with enthusiasm and must 
not lag one moment. She absolutely must not lose pa- 



MUSIC 231 

tience. Strong words and threats of punishment will 
never evoke a response in teaching music to children. 
Children must not be required to work until they are 
tired. If the teacher can enter easily and enthusiasti- 
cally into this subject she will find the recitation in 
music to be the most interesting, the most enjoyable, 
and the most restful one of the day. 

The superintendent where I taught silently watched 
my work in music. One morning he came into my 
room and found some music left on the board from the 
previous lesson. He asked rather bluntly, "Did the 
children compose that?" I replied, "Yes, Virginia 
did." He said, "Can she read it?" I quivered a little 
but replied, "She did yesterday." "Well, let's hear 
her," he requested. Virginia rose and sang it very 
clearly without a mistake. The superintendent said, 
"Thank you," and left me wondering what he thought 
of the work I was doing in music. Sometime later he 
asked me if I v/ould appear on the program in a teach- 
ers' conference and explain how I secured results in 
public school music. I said, "I can't talk but I'm will- 
ing to have my pupils talk for me." My pupils appear- 
ed, did their best, and carried off honors. 

AN APPRECIATION OF MUSIC GAINED 
THROUGH A STUDY OF GRAND OPERA 

By Nelle Averitt 

In the upper grades of our school we have instituted 
a fight against jazz music through a study of grand 
opera. Since children are always delighted to have 
visitors come to talk to them, we invited one of the club 
women who has made a study of opera to present the 
subject to us. She comes one afternoon each week for 



232 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

thirty or forty minutes, and tells us the story of an 
opera. As an act is covered each week we are able to 
study approximately one opera a month. 

We collect a number of phonograph records for the 
particular opera which we are studying, getting some 
from the homes of the children, buying some, and ask- 
ing the music store to lend us others. The records for 
the act for the afternoon's study are played on our 
phonograph during our opera period, and are repeated 
during the opening exercises each day of the following 
week so that the children may become familiar with 
them. At the end of the month we have a brief oral 
test on the story of the opera which we have just fin- 
ished studying. We then test the ability of the chil- 
dren to recognize the selections from the opera by play- 
ing strains from them on the phonograph and having 
the children write the names on slips of paper. 

Our pupils look forward to "Grand Opera After- 
noon," and they are all really learning to appreciate 
good music. Every child has his favorite selection 
from each opera ; and many of the children can explain 
very intelligently why they consider it best. Their in- 
terest leads them to look for accounts of the lives of 
the authors and composers of the operas. They are 
also learning to recognize the voices of the artists. 

The children are arousing the interest of their par- 
ents in good music. Mothers go to the music store to 
hear some of the opera records about which the chil- 
dren talk at home ; and they are buying these records 
instead of so much jazz. 

We believe that we are developing m our pupils a 
love for the best in music. 



DRAWING 



SELF-EXPRESSION THROUGH DRAWING 

Br Lydia M. Wilbur 

It is not difficult to teach children to love to draw, es- 
pecially if they are little children, for picture writing, 
reaching back as it does to primitive times, is almost 
instinctive with them. 

To begin with, I draw for the children myself, day 
in and day out. Whenever there is any possible excuse 
for it I make my meaning clear on the blackboard. 
That sounds like a great task but it really is not. My 
audience is most appreciative and anything but crit- 
ical ; and besides, anyone without a grain of talent can 
work wonders with chalk, charcoal, and a certain 
amount of preliminary practice. The children often 
say, when I have put a sketch in chalk and charcoal 
on the board, "Do it again, so we can see how you make 
It." They like to watch the picture develop, and to see 
me put in the shadows and other details. 

Sometimes, when correcting other written work, I 
will find a paper decorated with a little sketch that has 
been done just for the mere pleasure of making it. 
One child, a lad with no especial ability in drawing, 
was very fond of doing that sort of thing. I would 
find a little wigwam in a setting of trees, or a log cab- 
in, or an Eskimo hut. Often it would be a copy of 
something I had drawn on the blackboard, but why 



234 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

not? He took great pleasure in doing it and it added 
much to his self-confidence in learning to express with 
his hand the picture in his mind. 

When the children are learning to cut paper dolls I 
draw a sketch of the process on the board in -^ '■Idicion 
to folding and cutting many dolls for them. xi. many- 
problems of construction, too, a sort of working draw- 
ing on the blackboard is of great help. 

So they learn to think of drawing as a natural and 
necessary means of expression, as it should be. 

Action figures — ^we call them "stick boys" — are a 
delight to children. I use them constantly in illustrat- 
ing language lessons, reading lessons, numbers, and 
all sorts of things. As soon as the children begin to 
want to make them for themselves, as they invariably 
do, I teach them to draw the figures in different ways 
and also to dress them. One year the children were so 
interested in learning to draw them that they made a 
large poster of Mother Goose Village, drawing, color- 
ing, and cutting out the familiar characters, and 
mounting them on a background of blue sky and green 
grass, with plenty of trees and houses scattered about. 

I believe thoroughly in showing children how to 
drav/ certain things which they need in their pictures, 
instead of allowing them to blunder along alone. In 
making their first pictures of outdoors, children will 
almost invariably use blue for the sky, green for the 
grass — and a wide white space between for the air. I 
take them outdoors for a walk, and we look at the sky 
and talk about it until they see for themselves that the 
sky is blue behind the trees, that it seems to com© 
down to the very ground. The following drawing les- 
son or two will serve to clinch the point, or if it does 
not we take another walk. 



DRAWING 235 

We study trees in the same way, to see how the 
smaller branches grow from the large ones and the 
limbs from the trunk. When we return to the class- 
room I show how, in drawing a tree, it is easier and 
much more successful to make it grow naturally from 
the ground up, each successive branch adding to the 
growth and the strength of the trunk. 

The other day I was giving a lesson on the flag. We 
had a talk about the colors, counted the red stripes 
and the white ones, and the rows of stars. Then, with 
the children in a group beside me, I drew a flag on the 
blackboard with colored chalk, the boys counting the 
short stripes and the girls counting the long ones. As 
I worked I was glad to observe, out of the comer of 
my eye, that one little lad who used to ask, "Do we 
have to?" whenever I suggested drawing for seat- 
work, was edging nearer and nearer. When I got 
to the blue field, he gave a long sigh of pleasure and 
exclaimed, "It's getting prettier every minute !" 

In illustrating stories and poems, the first lesson is 
always a free expression in drawing by the children, 
followed by class criticism and much practice on diffi- 
culties. I like to make use of clay and paper-cutting 
in this practice work, especially with animal forms. 
We have a bulletin board, where each child's work is 
shown sometime during the month. The children criti- 
cize and commend their own work and that of each 
other. 

Not many of us have talent in drawing and very 
few may ever become artists, but it is possible for any- 
one who can learn to write to learn to draw also, at 
least well enough to express his own ideas and mental 
images. And self-expression is the purpose of 
drawing. 



236 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

VS^HEN CHILDREN LOVE TO DRAW 

By Mary B. Gnibb 

The small child's universal fondness for stories is 
rivaled by his love for picture-making. Under the 
guidance of teachers this natural love for drawing is 
easily retained, if the artistic skill of the hand develops 
along with the development of the other faculties. 

A well-known psychologist carefully viewed our an- 
nual drawing exhibit. His verdict was : "Subject mat- 
ter fine in all grades, but the primary drawing too 
good! Children do not see things that way." The 
chart to which he referred was filled with pictures of 
baby chickens. 

I explained to him that I had given the lesson to a 
large class of advanced first graders. First, I knew the 
majority of the youngsters would draw a vertical line 
for the leg with three slanting lines extending down- 
ward to represent the toes — a sort of pitchfork. To 
obviate this error I said, "To-day we are to draw baby 
chickens. Before we begin, I want you to play that 
your left arm is a chicken's leg, your fingers its toes. 
Show me on your desks how it would stand." They all 
placed their fingers spreading flat on the desk, holding 
the arm almost perpendicular. "Now take your right 
hand and follow the direction of the leg and toes, and 
show me in the air how you are going to draw the leg 
and toes." This done, I continued, "I hope none of you 
will make your poor chicks stand on tiptoe." This 
brought forth a hearty laugh, and a chorus of "No, 
No." 

We then brought in about a half-dozen chickens and 
gave them feed. The children were asked to study 
them, then to follow the shape of one by drawing its 



DRAWING 237 

outline in the air. When they had learned to use both 
the eyes and hand, I held one of the chicks against a 
sheet of paper for a few moments to give an idea of the 
size. 

Everyone worked happily, frequently stopping to 
study the subject again. The teacher and I stood in 
the back of the room, that we might get the effect when 
the entire class raised their drawings. 

The results were surprisingly good. The majority 
had made at least one toe almost horizontal and they 
were approximately the correct size. We both praised 
the work. Then I added, "All of you have drawn the 
chicken with its side toward you. Suppose we make 
another picture with the chicken facing you." The 
teacher and I each held a chicken on a book. We stood 
in front of the children and paused in each aisle long 
enough for all to get a good view. Then they drew 
from memory. 

The next lesson we again worked from life, but used 
water colors instead of crayons. The best work from 
the two lessons was pinned upon the burlap, which we 
had glued to the wall over the low blackboard. The 
burlap was finished with a narrow wood moulding. 
We always hung our best work there for a day or two. 
"Best" is an elastic term. If a child who found draw- 
ing difficult made a show of improvement, that piece 
was placed on the burlap. If a gifted child made a 
fair drawing, but one not so good as he was capable of 
doing, it was not exhibited. This method gave each an 
incentive to do his best. This scheme worked espe- 
cially well in the higher grades. 

The psychologist accepted, without any criticism, 
our way of presenting the subject and made several 
notes regarding our method. 



238 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

The lesson described was only the beginning of the 
subject. We made a collection of chicken pictures. 
Poultry books, magazine stories, and advertisements, 
as well as Easter cards, were the source of this mate- 
rial which was filed away in a large paper case. 

A third-grade class had made very unsatisfactory 
nature drawings. Their lines were poor, and the ar- 
rangement on paper and the size of sketch unsatisfac- 
tory, but worst of all they made no attempt to show 
the truth of structure. They had drawn a branch of 
buds, with no regard for their arrangement on the 
stem or the correct number. 

After studying the results, we planned to try again. 
Each child was given a branch of pussy willows, cray- 
ons, and three sheets of paper, each three inches by 
nine inches. The teacher said : "For to-day's lesson, I 
want you to think of just one thing. It is that your 
picture must tell the truth. As I ask some questions 
do not answer in words, but remember to answer them 
in your drawing. Is the stem hard or soft? Is it 
smooth or rough? Is there a bud at the top of the 
branch? Is the second bud at the right or left of the 
branch? Are the buds exactly opposite? Can you 
see just a part of some of the buds? How many buds 
are there on the branch you have ? Are the buds hard 
or soft ? 

"Now place one sheet of your paper at the left of 
your desk. Lay your branch upon it, not exactly in 
the middle, and be sure that it does not point toward 
the comers. Remember you are to answer my ques- 
tions in your picture and to make your drawing life- 
size. Do not move the branch. Take one of your 
sheets of paper and draw." The result showed a 
wonderful improvement. 



DRAWING 239 

To summarize: — 

1. Show the children how to see and feel things, and 
they Mall leaiTi to draw, 

2. Select subjects of interest. 

3. Draw when the interest in the subject is at its 
height even if it means a revision of an entire week's 
plan. 

4. Try to tell the truth of structure and of appear- 
ance. 

5. Have good reference material, such as, pictures, 
books, nature collections, poems, myths, and stories, 
that will add to the interest of the subject. 

RELATING DRAWING TO A PRACTICAL 
PROBLEM 

By" Fairolia B. Weaver 

In one schoolroom the drawing class appeared to be 
a real bugbear. Only a few pupils showed the least 
aptitude or interest in the subject. They endeavored 
to avoid as much of the work as possible bj'- various 
subterfuges. For this reason the teacher enforced a 
ruling that each pupil who v/as not fully prepared for 
the drawing period must remain fifteen minutes after 
school for each offense. 

Then the teacher began studying the problem in an 
effort to make the class so attractive that each pupil 
would look forward to it with delightful anticipation. 
Finally she decided to try a series of drawing lessons 
grouped about a central idea, which she hoped might 
stimulate the pupils* imagination and hold their 
attention. 

The teacher introduced the work by telling the 
class that each pupil was to imagine that he was going 



240 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

to build and furnish a cottage near a lake. She ex- 
plained that in order to make a pleasant and com- 
fortable home it was necessary to plan carefully and 
thoughtfully each detail of construction, decoration 
and furnishing; therefore it was expedient to make a 
book of drawings and descriptions illustrating these 
points. 

Since the name of the cottage was to serve as the 
title of the book the first requisite was the choosing of 
a name before designing the cover. The teacher ex- 
plained that the naming of a home was desirable, as 
it was a means of identification and a convenience in 
locating places and people ; that it showed respect for 
the home ; and that the name should be appropriate to 
the surroundings or suggestive of some distinctive 
feature. To illustrate, she wrote on the blackboard 
the names of the homes of a few noted writers. Then 
the class was requested to give suggestions. Some 
mentioned the names of homes in the neighborhood, 
while others who had visited lake resorts gave the des- 
ignations they had observed on some of the cottages. 
The teacher bade each pupil to come to the next recita- 
tion with a name for his cottage. 

During the first lesson a simple border for the cover 
was made. Several pupils exhibited clever originality 
by using a motif suggestive of the cottage name, as, 
for instance: Oakdale — a border of oak leaves and 
acorns; Ivy Cottage — a repetition of ivy leaves; Clo- 
vemook — clover leaves and blossoms; Orchard House 
— two pupils chose that name, and one made a design 
of apple blossoms and leaves, while the other used 
bright red and yellow apples. At the second lesson the 
name was printed in block letters, and the whole de- 
sign was then colored. 



DRAWING 241 

The teacher worked out forty-three lessons, as fol- 
lows : 
Selecting Name of Cottage. 

1. Designing border for cover. 

2. Printing name of cottage. 
Selecting Plan of Cottage. 

3. Drawing plan of cottage. 

4. Drawing front view of cottage. 

5. Drawing side view of cottage. 
Living Room. 

6. Design for stencil border or wall paper. 

7. Illustration of hanging draperies. 

8. Rug design. 

9. Working drawing of library table. 

10. Working drawing of bookcase. 

11. Illustration of fireplace. 
Dining Room. 

12. Design for stencil border or wall paper. 

13. Illustration of group windows draped. 

14. Rug design. 

15. Working drawing of dining chair. 

16. Monogram design for table linen. 

17. Drawing of cup and saucer below eye level. 

18. Drawing of electric light fixture above eye level. 

19. Drawing of bowl of flowers. 
Kitchen. 

20. Design for linoleum. 

21. Drawing of stove. 
North Bedroom. 

22. Design for stencil border or wall paper. 

23. Design for flowered cretonne draperies. 

24. Rag rug design. 
South Bedroom. 

25. Quilt pattern. 



242 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

26. Stencil border of conventionalized flower design. 

27. Same design for flower-bordered draperies. 

28. Crocheted oval rug design. 
Bathroom. 

29. Design for tiled walls and floor. 

30. Working drawing of cabinet. 
Porch. 

31. Design for rug. 

32. Nature drawing of geranium in pot. 
Garage. 

33. Plan. 

34. Front view. 

35. Car. 
Grounds. 

36. Plan of lawn and flower beds drawn to scale. 

37. Plan of vegetable garden. 

38. Drawing of shade trees. 
Study of Bird Houses. 

39. Design of bird house. 

40. Working drawing of bird house. 

41. Nature drawing of bird. 
Landscapes. 

42. View of lake from cottage. 

43. View illustrating perspective. 

In connection with the study of each room the color, 
materials, and design for the walls, floors, and fur- 
nishings were discussed and decided upon. Catalogue 
and magazine clippings offered useful suggestions in 
our discussions. 

Simple mechanical drawings, such as the different 
kinds of lines, triangles, and plane and solid figures, 
were made during the construction lessons. 

The teacher aimed to teach simplicity, harmony, 
and good taste as well as to inculcate ideas of thrift 



DRAWING 243 

and economy. This method of teaching drawing of- 
fered excellent opportunities for correlation, as the 
teacher easily included lessons in nature study while 
studying landscape and vegetable gardening, selecting 
flower designs, kinds of wood for floors, furniture, and 
woodwork, and planning bird houses. Hygiene and 
sanitation were taught while discussing suitable sites, 
drainage, plumbing, lighting, heating, and ventilation. 
Practical application of arithmetic v/as necessary for 
scale drawing, pattern making, working drawings, and 
estimating building and furnishing expenditures for 
the cottage. 

History and geography were reviewed while discuss- 
ing the homes of authors and the origin of building 
materials and furnishings. English and spelling were 
correlated by written descriptions and expository 
themes about the manufacture of such materials as 
lumber, brick, paint, linen and cotton cloth, rugs, 
paper, china, and linoleum. 

This practical m.ethod of presenting drawing work 
proved a decided educational success, as it excited and 
held the interest of the pupils throughout the entire 
course. 

CHILDREN LED TO SEE AND EXPRESS 
THE BEAUTY IN THINGS THAT GROW 

By Maud M. Hayman 

One of the delights of my life when I was a little 
child was to go walking with my father. He was a 
man with a seeing eye for the hidden, as well as the 
apparent beauties of nature, and he had an almost 
sympathetic affection for everything that grows from 
the ground. 



244 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

On these walks we did not pick flowers ; we visited 
them. You might have seen the big man and the little 
child down on their knees looking in the face of a 
Spring Beauty where it grew; you might have heard 
us talking about it and to it; you might have heard 
the man saying that probably the fairies had painted 
the delicate streaks of color on the white petals. As 
we walked along we watched our steps, not wishing to 
tread down anything too frail to right itself after our 
passing, as the grass could. 

Thus I grew able to see and enjoy the beauty of line, 
proportion, form, and color, not only of flowers, but of 
the plant before and after flowering. Not only the 
showy growth, but equally the commonest weed came 
to have for me beauty of line, form, and color. 

When I became a teacher and supervisor of drawing 
my work brought to me the knowledge that while most 
children like flowers, they have no sympathy with 
them as living things. My heart was troubled for both 
the flowers and the children, when in the spring they 
came to school bringing bunches of tender wild flow- 
ers, suffocated, crushed, and dying in their hot fists. 
Their vandalism as they played Indian in weedy lots 
horrified me because their careless feet destroyed so 
many wonderful things. 

So I set myself to work to teach children to see and 
to draw and paint the subtle beauty in the things that 
grow. I brought in specimens, pointed out their char- 
acteristic shapes and colors, and set the children to 
drawing them. The results were painfully disappoint- 
ing. The children did not see any beauty in the speci- 
mens and did not understand what I was talking about. 

All this was amazing and disconcerting, so I stopped 
this effort and did other things. One day I made a 



DRAWING 245 

new start. This was with children of the fifth and 
sixth grades. 

First, the children were taught to know by name, 
and to draw, three curves. The arc was made in all 
sizes, from a small finger movement to a large arm 
movement, and in all positions. The curve of force 
was drawn in all sizes and positions. The curve of 
grace was drawn in all sizes and positions, and was 
given many variations, from the letter S curve to a 
subtle curve that at first glance seemed to be a straight 
line. Also the children learned to vary its proportions 
from a curve having its reverse in the middle to one 
having the reverse near the end. 

Next, the children were led to recognize these curves 
wherever they could be found, first in obvious exam- 
ples, as in contours of pottery. Then they were given 
leaves and asked to draw them first in natural size and 
then very large (arm movement) : for instance, the 
curve of force on the edge of the lilac leaf, or the ex- 
aggerated curve of grace which forms the morning- 
glory leaf. They were asked to show how one side 
of the leaf differed from the other, as it usually does. 
Then they were required to draw with two lines the 
less evident curves forming the leaf stems and to show 
carefully just how much these two lines departed from 
parallelism. Many leaves were studied in this way, 
for I wanted to be sure that the child had possession 
of something. 

Then seed pods, carefully chosen for their interest- 
ing forms, were studied, preferably the seed pods 
of weeds, such as the Evening Primrose, and Toad 
Flax. Many, many seed pods were studied as the 
leaves were, for just one thing — the line movement of 
their contours. Again, every drawing was made nat- 



246 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

ural size and then very large, with free-arm move- 
ment. Immediately after each lesson we pinned up 
and kept before the children all the drawings that had 
good curves. The children began to be critical, to 
make comparisons, and to appreciate the grace of a 
well-made curve. 

A surprising thing began to be apparent. Propor- 
tion, which we have always made such an effort to 
teach, did not need to be mentioned. We started out 
to get one thing at a time, and found that in getting 
line movement the children also got proportion with- 
out anyone saying anything about it. And also, true 
structure and perspective appeared later in the draw- 
ings, though we did not mention them. 

There is hardly a straight line in nature. After 
much experience the children therefore began to see 
the difference betwen a straight line and a subtle curve 
that they would formerly have called straight. After 
a v/hile it became possible to give them a leaf or seed 
pod joined to a piece of stem and have them shov/ the 
modified contour of the stem where it makes a place 
to hold the leaf stem or pod. 

Very early in the spring a single leaf bud on a sec- 
tion of stem was given to each child. The children 
were then asked to tell what curves the bud and the 
stem required them to draw. They drew the curves 
natural size and then much enlarged, with arm move- 
ment. This drawing was outlined with a strong brown 
line, by using the point of a crayon. Then, by using a 
short, uncovered piece of crayon, a smooth, light tone 
of brown was easily spread within the outline. 

A few days later the children were each given an- 
other single bud on a piece of stem. Interest in this 
was just as keen, because by that time the children 



DRAWING 247 

knew that no two buds, however much alike apparent- 
ly, would require them to draw exactly the same kind 
of line. An enlarged drawing was soon on the paper, 
corrected and outlined. Again, with the small, un- 
covered crayon, brov/n was spread lightly inside the 
outline. Here something else was noticed. The brown 
was not like the brown of the first bud. It had some 
red in it. So red crayon was mixed with the brown. 
Thus the children learned that when the sap begins to 
run and the tree awakens from its long sleep, the 
brown of the twigs and buds begins to blush with red. 
Then yellow and green appear in rapid succession. 

By this time the children are actually excited, and 
they come to school bringing, not thick bunches of 
wilting flowers, but one small miracle of growth. They 
show the teacher its color blendings and its interesting 
lines ; and they tell her that they want to draw it. 

Lately I went into Miss K.'s room, and she said: 
"Do you see that that big boy over there is drawing. 
He usually causes quite a bit of trouble, but he came in 
early to-day with that curious bit of growth to show 
me. He said to me, *Say, isn't that a pretty color? 
May I begin to do it now?' It really is wonderful, 
isn't it? What a fine looking thing a bud, or seed pod, 
or a flower with its petaL gone, is when we know how 
to look at it. The children enjoy drawing these things 
as much as, if not more than, drawing flowers." And 
I went out with a prayer of thankfulness in my heart. 



NATURE STUDY 



STUDYING NATURE'S WONDERS 
WITH THE CHILDREN 

Br Edna P. Adel 

One hears on all sides such remarks as, "The idea of 
asking me to teach nature study. I know nothing 
about it." "I can't teach what I don't know." "What 
do I know about bugs and worms ! I just hate them." 
You have all, no doubt, heard at least one of the above 
remarks. 

I wish to make the alarming statement that the 
most enthusiastic and effective teachers of nature that 
I have ever seen were those who knew little or nothing 
of it when they started to teach it. 

Learn as the children learn. Oh, how they love to 
find something that you do not know, some moth new 
to you, some insect that you have to hunt up! How 
they love to come in with their hands full of weeds 
and get out a weed guide for identification so that they 
can help you mount and label them! 

I'll never forget my early days in studying the most 
common moths. I did not know any more about them 
than the children did. I did not know a Cecropia from 
a Promethea, or a Luna from a Sphinx. This added 
interest to the great game of hunting through a good 
moth guide to see what treasures we had. Our souls 
expanded and in a short time there were little groups 



NATURE STUDY 24» 

teaching the teacher the glorious things they had 
found out. 

Very soon each little group picked out its special in- 
terest in the gifts of nature, and brought in a great 
wealth of specimens and information. Some chose to 
watch the flowers. Some could not cease to marvel at 
our common weeds. The exquisite milkweed, the 
sedge, burdock, mullein, yarrow, teasel, and dandelion 
all hold the children by their lure and magic. The 
ferns with their curled-up fingers enchanted many of 
the children. 

The moths with their glorious riot of color almost 
made us breathless. The hunt for cocoons took us into 
highways and byways. The joy of having our first 
cocoons open before our eyes and of seeing the occu- 
pants come forth looking so unlike the vision of loveli- 
ness that we knew they would become, was a joy to be 
long remembered. We could not find a Luna or Pro- 
methea cocoon so we sent East and bought some. We 
just could not afford to miss the wonder of it all. 
Cecropia cocoons are so plentiful that one year we. 
found twenty-three in our down-town city district. 

Of course the birds held our interest throughout the 
year. One child discovered a pair of orioles weaving 
their nest on a great elm. That meant hours of silent 
watching by a group of us. It was a rare treat. Im- 
agme the joy of the boy who discovered it! 

It is all so wonderful, so worth while, so inspiring,, 
that no one should hesitate to spend time on it. In 
God's great out of doors, all will conspire to help you 
if you will undertake to try to learn of it, and as you 
learn, teach, and as you teach you will think of the 
widow's cruse of oil — the more you give of your 
knowledge the more you will have. 



250 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

WESTOVER JUX^iOR AUDUBON SOCIETY 

By Ida S. Given 

Near the Westover School are some maple trees 
which the birds chose as a safe place for their nests 
and the rearing of their young. One day the children 
found that by some unknown means a nest had been 
destroyed and the young birds were all missing, ex- 
cept one that lay under the tree, all mangled and bleed- 
ing. This little non-feathered helpless form was 
brought into the schoolroom, and caused a great deal 
of excitement and comment as to what should be done. 

We talked about this little bird and what might 
have happened to its mates. The home next door to 
the school building owned a cat. The children had 
seen this cat with a little chicken in its mouth one day, 
so, of course, it was put under suspicion immediately. 

We then began to discuss ways and means of band- 
ing ourselves together to protect the birds from such 
foul play. We had several talks about the matter, try- 
ing to figure out the best action to take. At last we de- 
cided to ask the other grades what they thought about 
organizing a bird club to find out more about birds. 

In order to create a greater interest in their plan- 
ning, one teacher showed the children two books that 
her grade had won as prizes in other schools by organ- 
izing bird clubs and competing in some picture con- 
tests. These books were awarded by the National 
Audubon Society. 

We called a general meeting of the different rooms 
and talked about the possibilities of an organization. 
It was decided that each room was to discuss whom 
they would like for officers and to submit a name for 
the proposed organization. At the next meeting they 



NATURE STUDY 251 

were to be given a chance to join the club by bringing 
a fee of ten cents. 

At the opening of the next meeting the other rooms 
reported favorably for an organization and submitted 
these names for the society, "Jenny Wren Bird Club," 
*'Westover Sentinels," "Westover Warblers," and 
"Westover Junior Audubon Society." The latter 
name received the most votes, and the club was so 
called. They then proceeded to elect a president, vice 
president, secretary and treasurer. 

One of the teachers had just had a letter from the 
secretary of the National Audubon Society, explain- 
ing how to organize and that the fee would be ten 
cents to cover cost of sending the bird leaflets and a 
badge to be worn by each member. 

The society met on Friday afternoons. Each room 
took turns at leading the meetings. Sometimes they 
were led by the teachers, sometimes by the pupils, but 
each room was supposed to be prepared to discuss the 
bird to be studied at that meeting. Sometimes the 
children read stories or compositions written about 
the bird, and sometimes the phonograph was brought 
in and a suitable record was played. 

Before the bird literature and badges came, we dis- 
cussed bird life in general from the coming of the 
birds in the spring to their migration in the fall; 
their uses to us : why we should protect them ; their 
natural enemies; and to whom we should report in 
case an offender is caught treating birds cruelly. The 
law on bird protection was explained. 

It was a gala day when the literature and badges 
arrived. All the members stood in a row, about sev- 
enty-five in all, and the literature and buttons were 
passed. As the buttons were pinned on, it v/as ex- 



252 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

plained to the children that in wearing the button they 
pledged themselves to protect birds from that time on. 

In the early spring we began to talk about building 
homes for the birds. Several different designs for 
houses were posted on the bulletin board and each 
child was to select the design best suited for the bird 
for whom he wished to build the box. 

After the boxes were all made and labeled with the 
child's name, age and grade, they were placed on 
tables in the hall on the first floor of the building 
where all could see them. 

Three men from the faculty of a near-by university 
•were selected as judges to award the prizes to the 
makers of the best box. Two dollars and fifty cents 
was given as first prize; two dollars for second prize; 
and one dollar and fifty cents for third and fourth 
prizes. Pictures were given by the school to those re- 
ceiving honorable mention. 

HOW I HAPPENED TO TEACH NATURE 

STUDY 

Br Vera E. Ball 

I had agreed to teach a district school which had the 
reputation of being rather hard to manage. As all 
former teachers complained of a lack of cooperation 
and interest on the part of parents and children, I de- 
voted a great deal of thought to this problem. How- 
ever, when September came I had no solution. 

By the end of the first week I found myself fully 
agreeing with my predecessors. There was no order, 
except such as I brought about by force of strict disci- 
pline. Then, by accident, I found the source of inter- 
est I desired. 



NATURE STUDY 253 

One day one of the boys brought in a large cabbage 
butterfly to show me. I took the little captive in my 
hand and began to tell the children its strange life his- 
tory. I noticed that they seemed interested, so went 
on to tell of other butterflies. When I had described 
the common brick-colored variety, one of the boys 
said, "Why, I can get you one of those. I see them 
every day on my way to school." I thanked him, and 
then suggested that they each bring any kind of but- 
terfly they could find, and we would study them. The 
ice was broken, and all were eager to talk at once. 

The next day I was deluged with butterflies. As we 
could not study them all at once, I showed the children 
how to prepare the insects for mounting. We spent 
our noons and recesses in the fields collecting butter- 
flies. We obtained some very fine specimens. Some of 
the children even brought bees, dragonflies, and wasps 
to add to their collections. The study of the insects 
added much to the interest of the school work, and 
furnished a topic for essays and discussions. 

When the frosts put an end to our collecting, we 
prepared our insects for exhibit. We filled flat boxes 
with smooth white cotton, and placed in the center a 
pressed flower. In some cases it was a spray of gol- 
denrod, in some a bunch of field daisies. One child 
found, in a book at home, a pressed wild rose, which 
looked very pretty against the white background. 
Around the flowers we grouped the best butterflies, in 
as nearly natural a position as possible, putting one of 
the bees on the flower, as if it were gathering honey. 
A glass cover, the size of the box, was fastened on with 
black passepartout. Then rings for hanging were put 
on the back, and our natural pictures were ready for 
exhibit. They were much admired by the parents on 



254 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Patrons* Day. At the end of the year, each child 
proudly bore off his collection to decorate the wall of 
his own home. 

I feel that the effort was worth while, because of the 
increased interest in the school work, and the develop- 
ment of the child nature by contact with and deeper 
understanding of the outdoor world. 

THE RIPPLE- VIEW BIRD STUDY CLUB 

Br Edith B. Blair 

Autumn was growing into winter. In the little 
schoolhouse not far from the Mississippi River, the 
children spoke of nutting parties, and of helping to 
get in the apples and to "pick up" potatoes. The Big 
Boy of the school, whose entrance I dreaded because 
of the stories I had heard of his disregard of rules and 
regulations, sent word he was coming as soon as the 
corn was "shucked." 

The children, though surrounded with interesting 
material to study, knew little of nature. I was sur- 
prised at the ignorance and indifference they showed. 
I decided that the birds and their study would come 
first, and was shocked and dismayed to find that they 
did not know the names of even the commonest birds, 
and cared little to learn them. Field trips of any kind 
were new in the Ripple-view district — a certain num- 
ber of hours hard at their lessons was the plan there — 
so we began with a field trip to see how many birds we 
could see and recognize. The result was not encourag- 
ing. The children were noisy and excited, regarding 
the trip as a sort of picnic. They frightened the birds 
away, and did not know the names of the few they saw, 
describing them variously, "a sort o' brown looking 



NATURE STUDY 255 

one" or "a blue one that looked kind of black." Yes, 
that first field trip was a failure, but we kept right on. 

I got several copies of a good bird guide, and a pair 
of secondhand field glasses. We studied the birds as 
they went south, spending several days with the black- 
birds as they gathered in the big maple tree near the 
schoolhouse. As winter came on I was sure I had ac- 
complished one thing. The children were interested. 
They almost embarrassed me with their eager descrip- 
tions and questions. I encouraged them to study the 
birds they saw and identify them from the bird guide. 
They learned to describe more accurately as they 
studied the descriptions in the book. The parents be- 
came interested and the guides were in demand, as 
"Papa wants to know what that kind of yellowish bird 
with spots on its head is that lives down in the or- 
chard." Yes, they were interested. 

Then the Big Boy came. I knew he had heard of the 
new teacher and "her being crazy about the birds." 
He made me no trouble, but spent his extra time in 
studying my copy of the guide. At noon that first 
day he asked my permission to go out with my field 
glasses to study a big bird that nested near by every 
year. Two of the smaller boys went with him, and 
they came back with an interesting story to tell us of 
a hen hawk that circled round and round a huge mass 
of twigs and feathers, a last spring's nest. They 
wondered why the big bird was so slow in going south. 
Later in the week they reported that all was still, and 
the big bird was on his way to the southland. 

I think it was early in December that we organized 
our Bird Study Club. We met on Friday after the 
last recess in the afternoon. We elected officers, mak- 
ing the Big Boy president. One of the girls was elect- 



256 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

ed secretary, and the two sat at a small table in the 
front of the room during the meetings. Each member 
of the school down to the tiniest child belonged, and 
was expected to take part in the program occasionally. 
I sat in the back of the room, and had a part in every 
program, usually a short talk which I tried to make 
very interesting. Everything was on the subject of 
birds. Sometimes we made our programs general and 
sometimes we studied one bird or family of birds. 
There was a program committee — new every month — 
that had charge of the programs with suggestions 
from the teacher. 

Sometimes the entire program was a surprise to me, 
and as I rested in my seat in the schoolroom and en- 
joyed the interesting numbers, I realized that the 
training the children were getting in initiative was as 
important as the nature study. There were readings 
and recitations, with a chance for the telling of true 
stories about birds. 

The programs were very good. The children planned 
them early in the week, and practiced at home. The 
mothers became interested and gradually began to at- 
tend. The children begged me to let their mothers join 
the Club. I was willing, and though they took little 
part in the program they enjoyed the meetings, and 
an audience helped the children to do better work. 

It is a long story, how we planned and studied that 
winter, how we looked forward to the coming of spring 
and its birds from the south, how we fed and cared for 
the brave little fellows who spent the winter in the 
north. Then came the early arrivals. Each morning 
we put down the birds seen and identified, with a spe- 
cial page of our Audubon Calendar for the names, 
dates, and obsei^vers of the first bird of each kind to be 



NATURE STUDY 257 

recognized. The boy or girl who saw the first blue- 
bird, or heard and saw the first robin was proud in- 
deed. This list was read at the Club meeting each Fri- 
day, and thus they learned by actual observation when 
to expect the return of the songsters. 

Spring same with its field trips, full of interest now 
to the quiet little group with field glasses and guides. 
The Big Boy had to leave us to help with the spring 
plowing, but one day he arrived breathless at the 
schoolhouse door just as I called the second reading 
class. He had found the nest of a loggerhead shrike, 
with the snakes and mice hanging on thorns near it 
"just like the book said." He had tied his horses and 
come across the fields, because he wanted us all to see 
it. I might have waited until after school, but I 
didn't. That eager look in his eyes was too much for 
me. I dismissed the class, and as quietly and quickly 
as we could we all hurried back with him, each with a 
Guide open to the picture of the shrike or butcher bird, 
and the field glasses screwed to the proper focus. She 
was on the nest, and she stayed until all, down to the 
tiniest child had a chance to see that she was exactly 
like the picture, then she flew away just far enough so 
that we could study her again perched on the hedge. 
We examined the nest, and then went back to our 
studies. 

Late in April we celebrated Bird Day with a whole 
afternoon of pleasure. We had guests, nearly fifty of 
them, and our last Club meeting of the year was the 
most enthusiastic we ever had. Our program was un- 
usually good. The Big Boy president was with us for 
the afternoon dressed in his best, with his mother 
smiling fondly from the front seat. He had walked 
two miles that morning to dig up three mulberry trees 



258 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

for us to plant on the school grounds for the birds, 
during the exercises of the afternoon. Later I took 
his picture with the spade as he planted the trees. 
The girls served hot chocolate and frosted cookies, and 
everybody enjoyed them. We had over fifty members 
when the meeting was over. The whole neighborhood 
was there. Our Bird Study Club was a success ! 



THE JOYS OF NATURE STUDY 

By Sara V. Prueser 

How much joy we would bring into our lives if we 
would but open our eyes to the wonders of God's handi- 
work. Are we going to permit the American boys and 
girls to remain blind to the nature that is around and 
about them, or are we going to have them employ all 
their senses in the joy of finding it? 

Children, naturally, love nature. To them the world 
is a heaven that lies about them in their youth. Why 
should it not continue to be a heaven as they grow up 
to manhood and womanhood? Will you not help to 
make it so? 

Take five minutes some February morning to tell 
the boys and girls about a bird you saw, concealing its 
name. Let them tell you what it is. If they do not 
know, ask them to find out all they can about it by con- 
sulting the bird books in the library. Insist that they 
talk to their parents and friends about this particular 
bird. The next morning show them a picture of the 
bird. Then test their observation and research work. 
Being sure of its identity, record on a chart, or in a 
notebook, its name, date, and the name of the pupil 
making the identification. After this work is done, 
ask them if they would not like to know fifty birds. I 



NATURE STUDY 259 

assure you that they will, if you but add a little fuel to 
the fire of your enthusiasm each day. A little boy in 
my room identified seventy-eight last Spring, with- 
out taking any school time for it. 

Direct the children's work in bird study from the 
following outline by having each pupil make a copy of 
it; also have him record all observations made in a 
notebook. 

1. Name — Date — Where seen? 

2. Size — compare with English sparrow or robin. 

3. Color — plumage, bill, feet. 

4. Markings — top of head, back, breast, wings^ 
tail. 

5. Shape — ^body, bill, wing, tail. 

6. Movements — hopping, creeping, swimming, 
walking. 

7. Flight — rapid, undulating, circling, direct, soar- 
ing, sailing, flapping. 

8. Song — ^variety of notes. 

9. Food — animal or vegetable, or both. 

10. Nest — location, shape, size, materials. 

11. Eggs — number, color, size. 

12. Young — first plumage, food, care of young by 
parent birds, length of time in nest, why they 
leave the nest. 

The first week in March, I said to the boys and girls, 
"Let us see how many song birds we can raise this 
summer. Whose dooryard is going to have the great- 
est number of birds singing in it?" With these sug- 
gestive questions the bird boxes and houses went up 
not only in their own dooryards but in the dooryards 
of others, as they induced their neighbors to put up 
boxes too. The first week in June, each boy took the 
bird census of the street on which he lived. One street 



260 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

had fourteen robin nests in maple trees, and a wren 
family in every wren house. 

I never saw such a bunch of enthusiastic youngsters 
as they were. Often their joy at making some new 
discovery was so great that they would come out to 
my home to tell me about it. 

The children's interest was greatly aroused when I 
asked if each one would like to establish a little bird 
park or sanctuary at his home. I had the children ex- 
plain to me how the birds were attracted to shrubs, 
trees, and flowers because of the shelter they gave and 
the insect life they provided; how on winter days of 
ice and sleet the bird's food supply was cut off ; how on 
dry, summer days their water supply was limited to 
rivers and lakes; and how the children must provide 
for these three essentials — food, water, and shelter — 
in order to attract the birds to their park. We de- 
cided that a little bird park should have at least one 
feeding station, a drinking fountain, and a number of 
suitable nesting places. This suggestive plan gave 
the children much constructive work to do, and kept 
their minds occupied with new and original ideas 
which resulted in beautiful bird parks. Wild and cul- 
tivated shrubs were planted, pretty gardens made, at- 
tractive bird houses and boxes put up, and, in some 
cases, artistic little seats were placed under the trees. 

Through the winter, the boys and girls did not for- 
get their **pets," as some called them, for whenever 
the weather conditions were such as to make the food 
supply short, the children put out cracked nuts, seeds, 
and bones. A number of the larger boys strung bits of 
suet on the thorn bushes, and tacked bones to the trees, 
besides making a number of shelters for the quail. 
They also saw to it that the feeding stations were kept 



NATURE STUDY 261 

supplied with food. Their attitude towards the pres- 
ervation of bird life was blest with the same feeling 
that they had for their pet animals at home, — solic- 
itous interest in the happiness of all life. 

The methods I employed in acquainting the pupils 
with the trees, shrubs, and wild flowers were quite 
similar to those I used in the study of birds. Trees 
were studied during the winter season. Pupils were 
asked to bring in sketched outlines of the trees ob- 
served. On Friday afternoon some of these sketches 
were drawn on the board. Then they were asked to 
tell about the bark, bud, and branching of the trees 
which helped to identify them. We studied the gen- 
eral usefulness of trees and what could be done to pre- 
serve them. The leaves of the trees were observed in 
the springtime. 

For the study of wild flowers, I have found the fol- 
lowing plan an excellent one for it provides suflficient 
variety to stimulate continued interest in the flower 
life of our woods and fields. In September the pupils 
report the wild flowers that are in blossom for that 
month; they do the same for October. A few general 
characteristics are observed. The simple life of the 
flower is taught as it appeals to the child, putting aside 
any effort to teach botany. Each pupil is then given a 
set of white cards six by eight inches, and asked to 
mount, after pressing, a specimen of the leaf and blos- 
som, but not the root. Uprooting flowers is a bad 
practice and should be discouraged, as it often results 
in the destruction of rare specimens. On the back of 
each card the pupil writes his simple description of the 
specimen: — name, date, where found, kind of soil, 
general appearance of blossom, stem, leaf, and buds. 
In the spring the wild flowers, blossoming in April, 



262 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

May, and June, are studied in the same way. So each 
year the pupil learns to know the wild flowers growing 
in his locality, to enjoy their beauty, and to provide 
for their propagation. 

Keep a map of the sky on your table and ask the 
pupils to find out what constellations can be seen each 
month of the year; what planets are evening stars; 
when they become morning stars; what astronomers 
have found out about the universe. Such suggestive 
questions as these will take the child out under the 
stars to scan the heavens that declare the glory of God. 



BIRD LIFE IN OUR CX)MMUNITY 

B>^ Alice J. Patterson 

It is surprising how easy it is to interest school chil- 
dren in the bird life of their community. Without ques- 
tion the best way to arouse this interest is to teach 
birds as a part of the nature study course. In schools 
that are not fortunate enough to have regular periods 
for nature study much may be done informally in 
correlation with language, reading, or geography. 

What the teacher wishes to accomplish is not merely 
to have the children talk about birds or know bird pic- 
tures, but be able to recognize the common birds by 
sight, to observe their habits, and to learn to protect 
them in every way possible. 

The method of approach will vary somewhat with 
the different grades. With any of the grades, how- 
ever, the work may start with a sort of challenge from 
the teacher as — "I saw a blue jay as I came to school 
this morning. He was calling 'spee spee' in a loud 
voice. I had a good look at him. I wonder if you 
know how many dijfferent colors he has? Keep on the 



NATURE STUDY 263 

lookout for jays and be ready to tell to-morrow what 
you see. Look for other birds also." 

I have never found this plan to fail in arousing the 
immediate interest of the children. All come ready 
with their reports, each one, perhaps, wanting to talk 
about a different bird. Many worth-while questions 
are asked and an interesting discussion follows. 

After several days of this independent observation 
the children are given some definite points to look for 
as — "Watch birds that are on the ground. How do 
they move about ? How do they show they are looking 
for food ? Watch birds when they fly. What do they 
do with their tails? Their wings? Their feet? 
Watch birds moving about in trees. Which ones walk 
along the branches ? Which hop from one twig to an- 
other? Which climb up the trunk? Stand still and 
listen to bird songs. Try to imitate them. 

"Watch birds collecting material for nests. If you 
can find a bird in the act of nest building watch it 
every minute you can spare. Try to determine whether 
both the father and mother bird work on the nest." 
These points are simply suggestive; the teacher will 
find others for the children to look for. 

Upper-grade children may be encouraged to keep 
records of the nesting habits of birds if they find a 
nest that can be conveniently observed from day to day. 

Another device to aid in keeping up the interest of 
the primary and intermediate grades is the picture 
calendar. For this the teacher needs colored pictures 
of the common birds. These should be mounted on 
stiff cardboard. When a child reports a bird that he 
has seen he is sent to the pile of pictures to find his 
bird. The picture is then hung up in a special place 
arranged for the bird calendar. The name of the bird 



264 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

and the date are written either on the board or on a 
sheet of cardboard and kept for reference. The next 
bird reported has its picture placed beside the first. 
This is continued just as long as new birds are re- 
ported. 

Upper-grade children keep in their bird booklet or in 
a pocket notebook a calendar of the birds they see. 
In connection with the calendar these children look up 
the migratory habits of some of the birds and weave 
into a story the journeys of the birds, telling the vari- 
ous countries they visit and some of the interesting 
things they see. 

Another plan that we sometimes use with the lower 
grades is to have the children cut outline forms of the 
birds they report and color with crayon or water color. 
Sometimes we use free-hand cuttings, sometimes 
stencils. 

Upper-grade children make bird booklets. They 
use colored pictures, three by four inches, that are ob- 
tained for one cent each. Each bird fills one page of 
the booklet. The picture is pasted near the top and 
below this the facts that the children have discovered 
for themselves are written. Frequently we suggest to 
the children certain interesting groups of birds for 
their booklets; as, "Birds Seen Around My Home," 
"Birds Seen in the Woods," "Birds Found in Fields," 
"The Thrush Family," "The Sparrow Family," and 
"The Mocking Bird Family." Each child chooses his 
own groups. 

Well-planned excursions are another incentive to 
keep up the interest. In the early spring the after- 
noon at the close of school is a good time for field 
study. If there is a large roomful of children it is 
better to take part of them one afternoon and the oth- 



NATURE STUDY 265 

ers the next day. During the latter part of April and 
the first part of May early morning excursions are 
best. These may be taken by upper-grade children. 
From five-thirty or six until seven o'clock is a good 
time. 

The chief value of the excursion is to help the chil- 
dren catch the spirit of bird study. Two or three of 
these field trips v^^ill do more to stimulate the desire to 
continue bird observation than a dozen indoor lessons. 

Nothing tends more to create a permanent interest 
than to encourage the children to care for and protect 
bird life. A discussion brings out the fact that birds 
need w^ater, food, nesting sites, and materials. 

Birds may be attracted to school and home grounds 
by providing them with plenty of water. Pans for 
this purpose should be placed a foot or two above the 
ground to prevent the attack of cats. During the sum- 
mer, birds find sufficient food in the woods, fields, and 
gardens. But in winter or early spring they often 
suffer from lack of food. Feeding stations should be 
placed on school grounds and children encouraged to 
place them at home. Upper-grade children should 
learn the shrubs whose berries attract birds and set 
some of these out on their home grounds. The best of 
these are bush honeysuckles, Japanese barberry, ar- 
rowwood, high bush cranberry, and flowering currant. 

During the nesting season building material should 
be supplied. Cotton strings, bits of yarn, threads, and 
horse hairs should be scattered on shrubs or the 
branches of trees. Small twigs taken from branches, 
pruned from trees and shrubs, may be scattered about. 
Pans of mud may be placed where robins can find 
them. Upper-grade children should make houses for 
wrens, bluebirds, flickers, and martins. These may be 



266 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

made in connection with manual training when that is 
taught. Some of them should be placed on the school 
grounds, some at home. 

Children should do everything possible to prevent 
the destruction of birds. The need of getting rid of 
stray cats should be emphasized. Pet cats should be 
fed properly and watched to see that they do not form 
the habit of killing birds. 

A program on Arbor and Bird day in which the 
children tell some of the facts they know about birds 
is an excellent climax for the year's work. An exhibit 
of bird booklets, posters and bird houses may be an 
interesting feature of the program. 



GEOGRAPHY 



LOCAL GEOGRAPHY AS A STEP TO 
WORLD GEOGRAPHY 

By Edith Whitcomb 

.We have been inclined in days past to look upon 
geography as a subject to enter the curriculum in 
about the fourth grade after the pupils have acquired 
considerable power and independence in reading. And 
so it should be if it is looked upon as learning a given 
amount of subject matter from some text, coupled 
with a detailed study of maps. But fortunately, mod- 
em ideas give us quite a different view of the subject. 
We learn that geography is the study of man's rela- 
tionship to his environment and the world in general, 
their interdependence upon each other, and how this 
relationship is effected. 

Asked not long ago "Where do you begin geogra- 
phy?" I replied, "In the kindergarten." This is liter- 
ally true for there the child first begins to reach out 
beyond the home into a concept of his dependence up- 
on others. He learns of the work being done for him 
by the farmer, grocer, baker, miner, and so forth. He 
learns that the trains bring him many necessities and 
that thousands of people are contributing daily to his 
well-being. This study is carried on through the first 
and second grades in more detail. He learns how the 
whole world is called upon to supply man's three great 



268 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

needs — food, clothing, and shelter — and, through a 
study of primitive peoples, how from the days of the 
tree-dwellers man has gradually developed more effi- 
cient methods for meeting these needs. The lives of 
cliff-dwellers, Eskimos, Indians, pastoral people, and 
pioneers all enlarge his vision of the world in general 
and the complexity of life. This paves the way for a 
detailed study of local geography in the third grade. 

I have found the outline, given below in skeleton 
form, which we are developing this year in the third 
B grade in our school very useful. The major part of 
the class discussion is carried on by the pupils, with 
the teacher acting as guide and occasionally furnish- 
ing a bit of information. Many questions are brought 
up in the discussions which form problems for the 
next day's lesson. These the children solve either by 
reading or making inquiries at home. The children 
are encouraged to suggest points for discussion and to 
bring in all additional material bearing any relation to 
the topic. For instance, last fall, in discussing news- 
papers, the teacher asked at the close of a lesson, 
"Have we learned all we wish to know about news- 
papers ?" A little girl replied, "I should like to know 
how they get all the news from so many places" and a 
boy added, "I have been wondering how the paper is 
made." These were used as problems for the follow- 
ing lessons. Excursions are made to every place pos- 
sible, and all types of material are brought in to sup- 
plement the discussions. 

Construction work, language work, and arithmetic 
are all correlated with the discussions. Some of these 
are suggested in the outline and additional ones are 
worked out by individual teachers. This year one 
group of foreigners worked out in detail a miniature 



GEOGRAPHY 269 

city on the sand table. The principal buildings as 
well as residences and an occasional garage were rep- 
resented. These were made from two to four inches 
high. Streets were laid out, and railroads were added. 

Other groups have worked out excellent posters 
showing the evolution of transportation. There are 
innumerable opportunities for language correlation 
through written work, oral descriptions, and poems. 
For instance, Stevenson's "The Lamplighter" was 
read in connection with the discussion of less modern 
methods of street lighting and made a very direct ap- 
peal to the pupils. 

In the third A grade this work is continued with de- 
tailed study of the leading industries of the com- 
munity. Of course, this study includes much more 
than just geography, but it is my opinion that it is the 
only way by which we can teach real geography — the 
world in relation to man's great needs. 

Outline for Third B Grade 

OUR CITY 

A. General knowledge 

1. Name, number of people, location in general, 
principal industries, near-by towns. 

2. How town originated, why so named, early his- 
tory as related by pioneers. 

3. Prominent large cities of U. S. 

B. Government 

1. City government — name of mayor, how selected, 
principal duties. 

How we can help officials. 

2. Government beyond city — state and United 
States. Chief officer, how chosen, where he 
lives, how he helps us. 



270 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

C. Schools 

1. Needs of education. 

2. How we learn. 

a. At home. 

b. At school. 

c. In libraries. 

d. Newspapers and magazines. 

e. Theatres including moving picture houses. 

f. Travels and lectures. 

g. Church. 

h. Observation. 

i. Compare primitive education and pioneer 

education with ours. ,Why does ours need 

to be different? 

D. Fire protection 

1. Needs. 

2. Causes of fire* 

3. Ways to prevent fires. 

4. Location of fire alarm boxes. How to call fire 
department. 

5. Equipment of fire department. 

6. Duties of firemen. Heroic lives. 

7. Use of fire drill in school. 

E. Police protection 

1. Needs. 

2. How we can help police. 

3. Life-saving crews. Their work. 

4. Lighthouse keepers. 

F. Water system 

1. Needs. 

2. Source of supply. 

3. How cost is met. 

4. Compare with primitive methods and methods 
employed in country life. 



GEOGRAPHY 271 

G. Lighting system 

1. Needs. 

2. Sources. 

H. Health Department 

1. Needs. 

2. How we can help. 
I. Transportation 

1. Needs. 

2. Modes of transportation. 

a. Railroads. 

b. Trolley lines. 

c. Automobiles. 

d. Aeroplanes. 

e. Boats. 
J. Postal service 

1. Needs. 

2. Transmission of mails. 

3. Money orders. 

4. Parcel post. 

5. Rural mail service. 

K. Correlated work in connection with this subject 

1. Map of state showing location of villages, cities 
and industries. 

2. Language booklets illustrating "Our City." 

3. Posters illustrating the many varied methods of 
transportation to and from "Our City." 

4. Sand table representation of "Our City." 

6. Arithmetic. 

a. Population of cities. 

b. Appropriation of money for various pur- 
poses. 

c. Taxes. 

d. Distances from "Our City" to places of in- 
terest. 



272 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

HOW TO MAKE GEOGRAPHY INTER- 
ESTING AND UP-TO-DATE 

By Lewis S. Mills 

Geography is one of the school subjects that changes 
rapidly. One day the capital of Russia was St. Peters- 
burg, the next day it was Petrograd. Before the war 
Germany held vast possessions in Africa, and at the 
close of the war she had lost them. Explorers are 
searching the far north, the far south, the interior of 
Asia, the tributaries of the Amazon, and other unex- 
plored portions of the earth. The boundaries of coun- 
tries change from time to time. New canals are 
opened and shipping routes change. The peoples of 
the earth, the winds, the tides, crops, occupations, in- 
terests, and activities, are continually changing here 
and there; and new adjustments are made. Land is 
rising in one place, sinking in another, and all the time 
the mountains are slowly wearing away. All is change 
and variation as the days go by. 

Yet, many teachers and classes study geography 
from the book alone. Perhaps the book was printed 
three years ago, possibly only a year ago; but there 
have been changes since then in some way in some 
parts of the earth. These changes should be noted. 

The interest of the pupils and teacher lags when 
day after day they turn to the same books, the same 
maps, the same pictures, the same descriptions and 
the same questions. The map drills on peoples, riv- 
ers, mountains, cities, lakes, islands, and countries of 
the world lack interest unless some new element is 
introduced. 

At the opening of school last fall we, the teachers 
and superintendent, decided to make the geography 



GEOGRAPHY 273 

work of the year one of our project subjects. We de- 
cided to find some way to make it up-to-date, inter- 
esting, and of more value than hitherto. 

With these objects in view, we adopted the follow- 
ing plan: 

1. The teacher and pupils were to look through 
magazines, papers, and any other available sources 
for cHppings and pictures to illustrate the subjects 
studied. These were to be brought to class to provide 
geography themes. 

2. The teacher and pupils were to watch magazines 
and papers for any reports of changes of names of 
cities, or changes in boundaries, or for new discov- 
eries; and these, as found and reported, were to be 
listed in the geography notebooks. 

3. Each room was to have a geography bulletin 
board in the school where geography items and pic- 
tures, on approval of the teacher, might be posted. 

4. Friends in other parts of the country or world 
were to be asked to send the school picture post cards 
or descriptions of worth-while things. 

5. The work in geography was to be no longer con- 
fined to the pages of the textbook. The textbook was 
to be supplemented from every available source. 

Last week on a visit to a fifth grade which had been 
studying China and Japan I found them reviewing and 
summing up the work. Pupil after pupil came before 
the class for a one- or two-minute talk. The first pu- 
pil held maps of China and Japan. He explained the 
location and climate. Other pupils followed with larg- 
er maps showing Pacific and world trade routes. The 
ports of China and Japan were named and located. 
The time from these ports to a few other great ports of 
the world was given. These were not maps from the 



274 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

geography but maps which had been found in maga- 
zines and a large city daily paper. Then followed pic- 
ture after picture of these countries. 

A few children brought in one or more books printed 
in China or Japan, and one child had a Japanese daily 
paper to show the others. 

Any part of the world can be studied in any grade 
in much the same manner as here described. The 
work must be planned by the teacher and organized 
definitely so that the children will know exactly what 
is to be done. In our school the interest in geography 
is greater than it ever has been, and the quality of 
work, both of teachers and pupils, is the best we have 
ever had. 

School books are useful and necessary, but we need 
to teach pupils to use the sources of information that 
will be available to them when they are no longer in 
school. As children grow up they cannot depend on a 
textbook in geography. The books they will have will 
probably be out of date ; and unless we teach them to 
follow the geography of the world in picture and print 
from day to day in the magazines and papers, they 
will find themselves, like many people of to-day, five or 
ten years out of date in their geographical informa- 
tion. 

HOW GEOGRAPHY BECAME A JOY TO 
MY PUPILS 

By Grace Wolgamott 

[When I began teaching in a little rural school, the 
most perplexing problem was how to interest the 
children in geography. The foreign countries and 
even our own neighboring states seemed so remote 



GEOGRAPHY 275 

from their daily lives that they could not grasp the 
facts concerning the people and their trades. 

I devised the following plan, whereby interest was 
awakened and geography became a joy. At that time, 
we were studying Asia, so I will tell how we proceeded 
with that particular continent; the same method ap- 
plying to all others. 

First, I took a large smooth piece of heavy wrap- 
ping paper, about three feet wide and four feet long. 
This I tacked on the wall in a place where the class 
could work at any time without being disturbed. 

Then I drew on the paper the outline of Asia. After 
a brief but lively discussion about the main rivers, 
mountains, lakes, and deserts, I turned the comple- 
tion of the map over to the children. They put in the 
countries, outlining the boundaries with black crayon. 
The mountains were also put in with black, while the 
rivers and lakes were done in blue. The children then 
colored the various countries in delicate shades. When 
completed we had a large, and really attractive map. 

As we took up the study of each particular country, 
we found pictures to illustrate the homes, customs, 
dress, and religion of the people; also the products 
and animals native to each. The products of each 
country were also neatly printed on the map and as 
the study progressed, towns, seaports, railroads, and 
canals found their proper places. 

In connection with the map work, the pupils did a 
great deal of supplementary reading regarding the 
lives of the peoples, especially the Chinese, Japanese, 
Koreans, and Hindus. Several magazines were help- 
ful to us in this work. A lively discussion in class of 
all that the children had read enabled them to retain a 
great deal of valuable information. 



276 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

One girl, after completing the study of Asia, said : 
"I can remember so much about those people. Geog- 
raphy is so easy now." This method socializes geog- 
raphy and gives the children a more sympathetic un- 
derstanding of our foreign friends, and of their rela- 
tion to us in our everyday living. 



GOVERNMENT MATERIAL A VALUABLE 
AID IN TEACHING GEOGRAPHY 

By NelUe B. Allen 

We live in a changing vi^orld. New industries are 
flourishing, new regions are being developed. The 
white man is penetrating the jungles and forests of 
the tropical world to obtain the valuable products of 
those regions, while the colder temperatures of north- 
em and southern lands are but little hindrance to his 
progress in those directions. 

As the years go by we are more and more dependent 
on other countries for many things, — minerals, animal 
products from other lands in the temperate zone, and 
silk, rubber, coffee, chocolate, tea, sugar, hard woods, 
oil seeds and nuts, gums, resins, dyes, drugs, and 
fruits from tropical and semi-tropical regions. Our 
young people who so soon will hold the reins of gov- 
ernment need to know of these industries, what coun- 
tries produce these articles, and what nations of the 
world supply our mills, factories, and distributing 
houses. 

World conditions are changing so rapidly that books 
which are only a few years old are not to be relied up- 
on. From the different departments of the goverment 
at Washington information regarding industries, 
products, and nations which is accurate and up-to- 



GEOGRAPHY 277 

date can be obtained free of cost. A monthly cata- 
logue of these publications can be obtained from the 
Superintendent of Documents at Washington. 

In writing to government offices for material, pu- 
pils must not expect an immediate answer to their let- 
ters. These departments are busy places. The offi- 
cials there are ready and willing to send to schools 
and individuals any material that they have for this 
purpose but allowance must be made for the enormous 
amount of work which passes through their hands. 
Letters should state very definitely just what informa- 
tion is desired and material for only a very few sub- 
jects should be asked for in one letter. 

If the course of study calls for work on North Amer- 
ica, an extensive use of government material may be 
made. Alaska may well be studied almost entirely by 
this means. The Bureau of Fisheries will supply ma- 
terial on the fish and fur industries ; the Bureau of Ed- 
ucation issues pamphlets on the schools and the peo- 
ple, and the Geological Survey will furnish material on 
mines and mining. The Department of Agriculture, 
in its series of Farmers* Bulletins, gives much valu- 
able information on fur farms in northern lands and 
the animals best adapted for this work. Though not a 
government department, the Alaska Department of 
the Seattle Chamber of Commerce issues material 
which is of great value in the study of Alaska. 

The pamphlets issued by our government give in- 
formation regarding industries and products in other 
lands besides our own. When studying Canada the 
work may be made much more valuable and inter- 
esting by the use of such material. From the Ca- 
nadian government at Ottawa also information con- 
cerning the different parts of the country may be ob- 



278 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

tained. The Departments of Agriculture, of Mines, 
of Trade and Commerce, and the Commission of Con- 
servation will be found especially helpful. 

The lessons on the United States will be of greater 
value if much study is given to authoritative material 
from Washington. Information from the Geological 
Survey regarding our minerals, the amount produced, 
the rank of the different states, and the production of 
different countries can be strictly relied upon. Our 
wheat, com, cotton, rice, flax and other products will 
assume a new importance when studied from descrip- 
tions written by experts in our Department of Agri- 
culture. The same is true of the information given by 
our Forestry Bureau concerning forests and forest 
products, and by the Bureau of Fisheries on the har- 
vests of ocean and lake and river. 

The Reclamation Service will send pamphlets de- 
scribing the great irrigation projects in the West, 
maps showing their location, and illustrations of reser- 
voirs, dams, and methods of conveying and using the 
water. 

From the National Park Service pupils can obtain 
material telling of the location, size, and number of 
our National Parks with interesting descriptions and 
illustrations. 

The Weather Bureau will send out information re- 
garding its work in foretelling storms, in warning 
sailors of dangerous seas, and in informing farmers of 
floods and frosts. 

Besides the assistance which may be had from these 
and other government departments, the Pan American 
Union at Washington has a wealth of material relating 
to the industries, cities, and people of the countries to 
the south of us. From this source the pupils can ob- 



GEOGRAPHY 279 

tain descriptions of industries such as that of the 
henequen from the fiber of which such quantities of 
cordage is made, the chicle from which our chewing" 
gum is manufactured, and the bananas from the won- 
derful plantations on the coast of Central America. 
Descriptions and illustrations of the industries and 
the fine cities of South America can be obtained from 
the same source. 

The study of countries in the Eastern Hemisphere 
may be made more interesting and more accurate in 
regard to present conditions if use is made of the help 
which the government can give. The Department of 
Commerce has for many years issued reports of in- 
dustries and countries written by the United States 
consuls in different parts of the world. 

Much information can also be obtained from de- 
partments of government in Australia, New Zealand, 
the Union of South Africa, and other places. The 
Cape Peninsula Publicity Association in Cape Town, 
though not a government department, has issued 
pamphlets relating to the developments in that far- 
away part of the world. Associations have done sim- 
ilar work in Melbourne, Australia, in Wellington, New 
Zealand, and in Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands. 

There is no better way for our boys and girls to be- 
come acquainted with the different departments of 
our government, the important work which each one 
is doing, and the many benefits resulting from their 
activities than by the direct contact in obtaining ma- 
terial for their school work. 

The idea has passed away that a school is a place 
where the children prepare for their real life which is 
to come in after years. The pupils are experiencing 
in their schoolrooms life that is as real as any that will 



280 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

come to them later. Therefore they should do real 
things. If in their early years our boys and girls 
realize the value of books and the benefits of govern- 
ment help, they will as mature citizens work to obtain 
these things for the town or city in which they may 
live. 



THE TRAVEL CLUB 

By- J. H. Mould 

A really successful teacher must be an inventor — 
that is she must invent new and better ways of teach- 
ing the old subjects. This is preeminently true in 
teaching the subject of geography. 

Several years ago there was a class of boys and 
girls in our school, numbering twenty-three in all and 
made up of left-overs from grades six, seven, and 
eight. They ranged in age from ten to sixteen and 
were reported as being hopeless and helpless cases in 
the study of geography. 

One teacher in the school claimed to have made an 
invention and wished to see if it would work with this 
class. It did not seem quite right to experiment with 
these children. All agreed, however, that it would be 
impossible to increase their hatred of geography or 
add to their geographical stupidity. So the teacher 
was given a free hand and this is what happened. 

At the first meeting of the class the teacher talked 
for a few minutes about the Yellowstone National 
Park and California. She then asked if there were 
any other places about which the children would like 
to know. One of the girls wanted to know something 
about Niagara Falls, and a boy wanted the teacher to 
talk about the Grand Canyon. The teacher did not 



GEOGRAPHY 281 

talk about these places, but suggested that the class 
organize as a club to plan trips and learn about these 
and other interesting places and sections of the United 
States. 

This led to the organization of the Travel Club, with 
the following officers elected for twenty weeks : presi- 
dent, vice president, secretary, and treasurer. Funds 
were needed for postage and a "real trip" to New 
York City, which was only a few miles away, at the 
end of the year. To meet these financial needs dues 
were fixed at ten cents a week. 

The next day the Travel Club met at the usual time 
and place. The president sat at the desk and the 
teacher, having joined the Club, sat among the mem- 
bers. The matter of purchasing pins for the Club was 
discussed, and a committee of three was appointed to 
present to the Club as early as possible sample designs 
and prices. It was also voted to hold a party the last 
Friday in each month from three-thirty to four-thirty 
o'clock. These parties were to be held in the assembly 
room, and all the games had to relate in some way to 
travel. A committee of five was appointed to have 
charge of the first party. Another committee of five 
was appointed to meet with the officers and the teacher 
to look up and report at the next meeting on several 
travel routes to the Pacific and return. 

At the next meeting four travel routes to the Pacific 
and return were presented. The advantages and dis- 
advantages of each were discussed. The Club finally 
voted to take a northern route to California and to re- 
turn by a southern route. The teacher moved that the 
president appoint a committee of three to report to the 
Club at the next meeting the names of the states crossed 
by this trip. This led to the appointment of a committee 



282 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

to report on cities, one on industries, and another on 
climate and products. 

The following day the pupils were actually anxious 
for the time of the meeting to arrive. Without any 
suggestion from the teacher some of the pupils took 
their geographies to the meeting. The textbook had 
become a servant in place of a taskmaster. The route 
was traced through the states during the committee's 
report. Other committees were anxious to report. 
New ideas were brought out, and new and interesting 
facts learned by all, the teacher included. The inter- 
est was so great that the period seemed very short. 

As the committees reported and the study progressed 
at succeeding meetings, it was found necessary to col- 
lect more information relating to the trip. Commit- 
tees were appointed to write to railroad companies for 
time-tables and folders; to chambers of commerce in 
various cities, asking for descriptive matter relating 
to their cities; to great industrial plants, asking for 
literature describing their plants. So much valuable 
descriptive matter, written and pictorial, was received 
that it was necessary to elect a librarian to classify 
and care for it. This material with the one hundred 
or more essays written by the members of the Club, 
describing scenery and industries connected with 
study trips, is still in the school as a part of its equip- 
ment for the study of geography. 

After this kind of work for four weeks, the route 
was again traveled, this time with time-tables in the 
hands of the pupils. This was a very clever way of 
conducting a review. New time-tables were given out 
when there was a change from one line to another. 
Before the Pacific coast was reached every member 
was able to read his time-table and tell at just what 



GEOGRAPHY 283 

time any city would be reached, barring accidents or 
delays. At Erie the teacher asked the president's per- 
mission to move the hands of the clock one hour. 
(The teacher had previously placed in the room a clock 
dial.) Permission was granted. At this point some- 
one asked the president for information. Whereupon 
the president very cleverly appointed a committee to 
explain the matter at the next meeting. At the next 
meeting the subject of standard time was discussed. 
As the journey progressed the hands on the dial were 
moved at the proper cities to represent the change in 
time. 

The interest in this imaginary trip was very great. 
The teachers in this school noticed that the "left- 
overs" were always busy during the study periods. 
The geographies were in constant use. However, the 
pupils were not studying geography; they were pre- 
paring their reports. The Club was the only envied 
class in the school, and the class was the most talked-of 
one in the school and in the community. 

At the beginning of the second school term new offi- 
cers were elected. It was an interesting and exciting 
election, yet honest and orderly. It was evident that 
while the boys and girls were learning geography, 
they were also learning self-government. 

During the year the Club carried out, using the 
same general plan as given above, the following study 
trips : 

1. Canada. 

2. Around South America by the Way of the Pan- 
ama Canal. 

3. Around Africa with Three Side Trips Inland. 

4. Southern Europe, Russia, and back across North- 
em Europe. 



284 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

5. Trip to Japan, China, East Indies, and Southern 
Coast of Asia, Returning by the Way of the Suez 
Canal. 

Early in June the Club took the "trip" to New York 
City, visited the Statue of Liberty, Aquarium at the 
Battery, and Museum of Natural History. This teach- 
er had invented a method of teaching geography so 
that it was the most interesting subject taught in the 
school; and while she was teaching geography she 
taught more real English than the teacher of English, 
more history than the teacher of history, and more 
patriotism and self-government than the teacher of 
civics. 



LET YOUR TOWN TEACH YOUR SCHOOL 

By Mabel L. LaRoche 

Every town has its noble character, its industries, 
its public utilities, its beautiful scenes; each of which 
should be required to contribute its quota to the educa- 
tion of our country's future leaders. Much of the value 
of lessons from these sources is dependent, of course, 
on the originality of the teacher. The textbook slave 
never gets outside the covers of her book, with the re- 
sult that glory and pride in one's community do not 
have a chance to develop through efforts of hers. 

Miss A. was a self-made teacher with opinions, but 
she was not opinionated. She was given to weighing 
evidence and forming her own conclusions. She read 
widely, and she attended many teachers' conventions. 
From the mass of material she was constantly gather- 
ing she had the common sense to make use of what was 
worth while and reject the nonessential. It was her be- 
lief that the schools should be made to fit the everyday 



GEOGRAPHY 285 

life of the children, and she felt that the environment 
of any school furnished ample material for thought and 
study which was fully as interesting as the wilds of 
Australia or the civilization of ancient Greece. "Know 
America First" was her motto and above all, "Know 
Your Own Town." 

The following- is a simple but authoritative account 
of the way she let the town teach her school. It was a 
small town of not more than two thousand inhabitants 
and few industries, but Miss A. made the most of what 
there were. 

Early in the fall a canning factory always operated 
for a few weeks. Miss A. enlisted the cooperation of 
the superintendent of this factory and arranged a date 
when she might take her school to visit the place. The 
children were delighted. To get beyond the confines 
of the schoolroom walls delights any child. 

A preliminary discussion on excursion etiquette was 
necessary before they started out. Miss A. told the 
children that their behavior on the street should be 
quiet and refined ; and that they might repay the super- 
intendent for his kindness in allowing them to visit the 
factory by being quiet in manner, by seeing with eyes 
instead of fingers, by being careful not to distract the 
attention of the factory workers from their tasks, and 
by listening attentively to all explanations the oper- 
ators might give them. Then Miss A. gave the children 
a list of the things she wanted them to observe care- 
fully so that they would be able to describe them later, 
for example : how the blueberries came into the fac- 
tory, how they were cleaned, cooked, and canned and 
how the cans were sealed, labeled, and crated. 

Needless to say the excursion was interesting as well 
as successful. >VTiat one child did not see another did. 



286 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

One might ask how this was of value from an educa- 
tional point of viev*. Its vakie lay in the fact that Miss 
A. correlated the cannery with practically every school 
subject. The realm of geography was entered when 
they discussed where the berries came from and where 
they were going. Whence came the tin cans, the paper 
labels, and the wooden crates? Extensive research 
work was necessary in order to learn as much as possi- 
ble about the materials upon which the canning indus- 
try depends, and the reason why such industries spring 
up where they do. The canneries of other parts of the 
country were studied. Who can measure the amount 
of geography which followed this expedition to the 
canning factory ? For days drawing, spelling, hygiene 
(sanitation), language work, and arithmetic lessons 
revolved about it. This, and other expeditions that 
came later, furnished material for practically every 
phase of arithmetic — the four fundamental processes, 
fractions, measurements, compound quantities, per- 
centage, gain and loss, interest, and so on. 

This town was a railroad center, being the halfway 
point between two important terminals. It boasted a 
turntable and a splendid big engine house ; so with the 
consent of the yard master Miss A. and her school 
made the railroad yard their next scene of invasion. 
The yard master conducted them on their tour of in- 
spection, and the engineers and firemen were most ac- 
commodating, taking considerable time to explain 
the mechanical workings of the various parts of the 
great machinery. Can you doubt that interest ran 
high, and especially so when each child was invited to 
climb aboard one huge engine and have a ride around 
on the turntable? More than two weeks passed after 
that excursion to the engine house before its geo- 



GEOGRAPHY 287 

graphical, mathematical, and other educational possi- 
bilities had been exhausted. 

The printing office of the village weekly became the 
next object of interest and it would be difficult indeed 
to overestimate the kindness shown by the editor and 
his staff. All of the machines, including the linotype, 
almost human in its perfection, the huge presses, and 
the paper folding machine, which worked with light- 
ning rapidity, were put through their paces for the 
special enlightenment of the children. And the joy of 
possession was boundless when each child was given 
his own name made in lead by the linotype machine. 
One of the language lessons following this visit to the 
printing office was an informal letter of appreciation 
written by each child to the editor and his staff. The 
best letters were sent to him ; and did not the pride of 
authorship run high when two of these letters appear- 
ed in the paper the following week? 

One beautiful day in midwinter offered the setting 
for a visit to the lake to see how ice was cut and stored 
away for summer use ; while in early spring a generous 
farmer extended an invitation to the school to visit his 
camps to see how maple sugar is made. 

There were numerous other expeditions that year 
into the great school outside the schoolroom: nature 
walks to study birds, flowers, and trees ; and tramps to 
the hills and fields to leani geography from the great 
teacher, Mother Earth. The early history of the vil- 
lage was easily obtained by interviews with its oldest 
residents, while Civil War veterans took delight in re- 
lating their fascinating reminiscences of the days of 
'61. 

This method of instruction proved enduring ana 
truly educative. From it the children learned lessons 



288 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

in character building; resourcefulness; self-control; 
appreciation of Nature in all her loveliness; love for 
one's community and its organized industries and 
achievements; and a desire to lead nobler and more 
useful lives by promoting the highest welfare of one's 
social center — ^the home town. 



HISTORY 



HOW I ENLIVENED A DEAD HISTORY 
PERIOD 

By Inez M. Polder 

All teachers have experienced those moments when 
the atmosphere seems heavy, the children restless, and 
interest at a low ebb. This happened one day in my 
history class. It was an unusually large grade, and 
the lesson waxed dull because there were facts that 
had to be drilled in. I was just about ready to scold 
when the thought came to me to try something differ- 
ent. I closed my book and said: "You may have ten 
minutes in which to prepare a dramatization of some 
fact in history. You may use anything in the room 
you need, and you may move the furniture if you 
wish." 

Was there interest? Well, in a moment the room 
was astir. There were groups here and there talking 
excitedly over what they should picture, and, in order 
to decide whether it was this way or that, many refer- 
ences were made to the book. When I said, "Time is 
up," they were all ready to put on the "show." 

There were scenes of all kinds: Columbus taking 
possession of the new world, the Boston Tea Party, 
Washington crossing the Delaware, and many others. 
I know some will say, "This would be burlesquing his- 
tory." I almost thought so myself, but the next day 



290 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

when I heard the animated discussions and found the 
children going through the text to find facts that 
might be pictured, I decided it served a purpose. Be- 
sides, it saved a situation. The class just escaped a 
scolding vi^hich might have given someone a lasting 
dislike for history. 



THE USE OF STORIES IN TEACHING 
HISTORY 

By Lula P. Whinna 

If I were asked which period of the day my boys 
and girls enjoy the most I should say without a mo- 
ment's hesitation, the history period. 

One of the most important functions in the teaching 
of history is to develop an historical point of view in 
which present-day events are seen in their relation to 
the past. If rightly taught, it gives to the children a 
sense of contact with people of various types. 

In our history work in the third grade we present a 
series of stories dealing with heroes of the ancient and 
modern world. We appeal further to the historical 
sense of the little people by telling them stories relat- 
ing to national, state, and seasonal holidays. 

The teacher must prepare her stories with care, for 
her time is limited and there are no textbooks in the 
hands of the children. The story may be told in one 
lesson or divided into two or more chapters. We use 
the oral method without the use of notes or outlines. 

"A long time ago" or "In olden times" rather than 
formal dates, makes a strong appeal to the average 
story-loving child. As the story moves on, pictures, 
objects, and costumes may be introduced to illustrate 
a point. Sometimes at a critical situation I ask, 



HISTORY 291 

"What would you have done if you had been in — 's 
place?" 

Added interest results from saying: "Perhaps this 
afternoon we may make a log cabin like Lincoln's/' or 
"To-morrow we shall have a cutting lesson and make 
a picture of the Pilgrims going to church." 

When the series of lessons is ended we gather up the 
threads by a socialized recitation. When the children 
realize that this socialized recitation is to follow, they 
listen very carefully to the stories. At first the work 
will be very crude and some confusion may result from 
the fact that a number may want to speak at once but 
a little training and the suggestion "We must be very 
polite and not speak when another boy or girl is on the 
floor," will result in surprisingly interesting and help- 
ful recitations. 

Last but not least from the standpoint of interest, 
is the dramatization of the story. "Shall we play the 
story ?" always brings an unanimous "Yes." We must 
not forget that the teacher should remain in the back- 
ground and let the children express themselves. 

The "playing" has a threefold purpose; it gives 
pleasure to the child, gives free play to his creative 
imagination, and by putting his thought into action 
makes the character live. 



THE DRAMATIC ELEMENT IN HISTORY 

By Sabra Conner 

History may be made a very dry and uninteresting 
subject to a boy or girl who is wide-awake and likes to 
do things or it may be so presented as to arouse the 
imagination, stimulate interest in life, and create a 
love for reading which will be a lifelong joy. 



292 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Any appeal to the feelings must be by concrete pre- 
sentation, not by abstract reasoning. The more di- 
dactic and moralistic it becomes, the less vital it is. A 
good historical novel presents a truer picture of a peri- 
od than a history of that period. The reason is that a 
novel takes life at an intense moment and presents it 
concretely, while a history, too often, presents facts 
and deductions in a logical order and makes an ab- 
stract appeal to reason. 

If, then, one wished to make children like history, 
every device for concrete presentation should be used. 
In beginning history, stories of men and women who 
helped make great periods are usually given. These 
stories create an historical background which may be 
used as a basis for the teaching of facts. 

I have found that a little time spent in working out 
simple dramatizations vivifies a history class as noth- 
ing else will do. It is a good thing to have the stu- 
dents write their own one-act dramas. Where Eng- 
lish work can be correlated with history this is an ideal 
thing to do. Pupils will gladly use history for re- 
search on anything so intensely interesting as a play 
about Pocahontas or Miles Standish. Where this cor- 
relation is impossible, and the amount of time neces- 
sary for working out the details of a play by members 
of a class is a thing that cannot be arranged, the next 
best thing to do is to make use of some simple drama- 
tization already written. 

It is important, however, that the play be brief 
enough, and simple enough in its stage requirements, 
so that it may be frequently presented in the history 
class, and thus its drill value be not lost. 

If it is to be constantly used, a play's wording must 
be excellent. For my own use, I did not find any of 



HISTORY 293 

the books of dramatizations altogether satisfactory. I 
wanted bits that could be quickly learned and often 
presented. Therefore, I took moments of intense ap- 
peal and put them into dramatic form. 

Even so dry a document as the minutes of the Con- 
stitutional Convention is really alive with drama. 
Moreover, the language of the delegates as recorded 
by its secretary, James Madison, is worth memorizing. 
I have never found a way of teaching the Constitu- 
tional Convention that equals in interest the drama- 
tization of the vivid moments when Benjamin Frank- 
lin, Alexander Hamilton, Robert Morris, and George 
Washington spoke in person, heatedly, or judicially, 
according to temperament. It also proved a most ef- 
fective manner of teaching parliamentary procedure 
and fastening in mind the troublesome compromises of 
that period. 

The history teacher who fails to make constant use 
of dramatization in teaching is neglecting one of her 
keenest tools. 



A HELPFUL HISTORY GAME 

By~ Annye Allison 

Some time ago I had a class which greatly disliked 
history, so I tried this plan. During the week, the pu- 
pils were told to pay close attention to all of the les- 
sons and make note of any questions which could be 
used in a history game. On Friday at the beginning 
of the history period, each one was privileged to make 
a report and hand in all questions selected during the 
week, with corresponding answers. The teacher read 
these aloud and the class selected the best, revising the 
wording, whenever necessary, for language work. 



294 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

These questions and answers were copied on separate 
cards and numbered. 

One pupil was then chosen for teacher and all the 
questions given to him, while the answers were equally 
divided among the other children. The one who was 
chosen teacher read a question aloud and counted ten. 
If by that time the child who held the correct answer 
had not replied, any pupil who knew the answer gave 
it, and the card was handed to him. The child having 
the largest number of cards at the end of the game 
was declared the winner. 

The children showed immediate interest, and as the 
number of questions grew steadily from week to week, 
and the game which they were proud of having made 
themselves, was played only on Friday, they did not 
tire of it. What was better, they came to have a 
thorough knowledge of the history course through this 
regular weekly review, and I felt well satisfied with 
the experiment. 

AN INTERESTING HISTORY NOTEBOOK 

By" Mary M. MacDonald 

In teaching history, it is very important to have pu- 
pils keep a notebook in connection with their lessons. 
If they take pride and pleasure in the making of their 
notebook, interest in history is almost assured. 

Instead of requiring pupils to take down notes in 
the order of events, regardless of what the events are, 
let them keep those of a kind together. In order to do 
this, first number the pages, allowing so many for 
wars, so many for government, so many for progress, 
so many for territorial expansion, and so on. Have 
an index in the front, so that pupils may turn to any 



HISTORY 295 

heading with little difficulty. As each portion of his- 
tory is studied let the pupils put material under the 
proper headings. This enables them to easily trace 
one phase of the growth of the nation from early days 
to the present time ; otherwise they might fail entirely 
to make any connection between one stage of develop- 
ment and another. 

The last few pages of the book might be used to 
keep a record of the great men and women famous in 
history. Have these pages ruled into spaces by draw- 
ing lines down the page. The first space could be used 
for the name of the person, the next space for the 
dates showing the time he lived, the third space for 
what he was — whether general, statesman, religious 
reformer, inventor, author, and so forth, and the last 
space for what he had accomplished. 

A similar device could be used to keep record of the 
presidents. Have these pages divided into four 
spaces : the first, to be used for the name ; second, for 
the date ; third, for whether good, fair, or poor, (this 
to be left to pupils' own judgment) ; fourth, for the 
principal event in each administration. 

The history notebook should be illustrated. Pic- 
tures which are miniature reproductions of paintings 
of historic scenes by famous artists can be obtained 
from magazines or from picture catalogues. These 
could be pasted into the notebook. Maps of parts of 
our country of historic interest should be drawn by the 
pupils themselves. Pictures and maps, of course, 
should be placed beside the notes to which they are 
related. These notebooks have resulted in excellent 
work in history in my school. The systematic method 
appeals to the children and develops a much greater 
interest and pride in their work. 



296 PEDAGOGICAL PEP. 

USE THE CHILD'S LOVE OF MOVING 
PICTURES IN TEACHING HISTORY 

By Doris Beard 

History is termed dead, dry, and hard, by children 
of all grades and ages. I was not surprised, therefore, 
when I found my sixth grade no exception to the rule. 
Yet history is one of the important school subjects, so 
I set myself to serious thinking on why children dis- 
like it, and what could be done to remedy the matter 
for my grade. 

I arrived at these conclusions : children, almost uni- 
versally, enjoy stories; history consists of story after 
story of adventure, wonder, courage, and devotion; 
therefore, children who do not like history are not 
able to see the story in it. After further exploration I 
found that the children who really did like history 
were children with a great deal of imagination. The 
others did not have sufficient imagination to see the 
story in history as it had been presented to them. 
Even an exceptionally interesting history text roused 
only a faint interest in these children. 

The next question to solve was : "Is there anything 
in which these children are vitally interested, that 
could make them see history as a story?" "Yes, the 
movies." Teaching history would be no problem at all 
if it could be depicted through moving pictures. But 
machines and the proper films are, for most schools at 
least, unattainable. 

At this point I thought of my plan. My children 
were studying the story of Rome in Caesar's time. The 
next day I opened the history lesson with the question, 
"How many of you like to see moving pictures?" An 
eager waving of hands was my response. 



HISTORY 297 

"Well," I went on, "think hard and try to remember 
which, of the pictures you have seen, is your favorite." 
The answers were varied, but finally I got one that 
suited my purpose perfectly. Norman had seen a pic- 
ture in which ''they had put a lot of people in the ring 
and let the lions come out and devour them, and all the 
people yelled, and everything !" 

"And — why," he added, as a new thought dawned 
on him, "it was sort of like our history 1" 

Other children then began to remember things they 
had seen in moving pictures that were a "little bit like 
history." As they told of these a vague idea that his- 
tory and the "movies" were in a way related was 
dawning in their minds. 

It was time for a history review. Instead of say- 
ing, "To-morrow's lesson will be a review of the story 
of Rome," my assignment was the planning of a 
scenario that would be interesting to see, and that 
would tell all about what the old Romans were like, 
and what they did. 

Our composition lesson that day was the making of 
a simple outline or form, in which to put their scenari- 
os. In class we wrote the outline for the first two 
scenes. It was: 

1. Inside a Roman Dwelling. Flash on screen : "In 
the old days there were wandering story-tellers, who 
told the people stories that were handed down as 
myths." Brief description of room and assembled 
Romans. Old man enters, sits down and tells stories. 

2. Bank of River Tiber. Flash on screen : "One of 
the favorite tales of the Romans was that of Romulus 
and Remus. When they were babies a cruel uncle set 
them adrift on the Tiber to die." Picture shows the 
uncle setting the twin babies adrift on the river. 



298 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

The children were enthusiastic over "making mov- 
ies" and the results were therefore wonderful, A few 
of the scenarios, while crude, were very original and 
good. But more important than that, for my purpose, 
all of the papers included a correct account of the en- 
tire history lesson, and the children had enjoyed writ- 
ing them. 

When we had our examination in Roman history 
every child, with only two exceptions, in the class of 
twenty-four made eighty-five per cent or higher, and 
nine of them made between ninety-five and one hun- 
dred per cent. Best of all, they like history. 

LEARNING BY DOING 

By Elizabeth Mitchell 

"How long did it take our forefathers to draft the 
Constitution?" I asked my class. No one seemed to 
know ; the text did not say. "How long was it before 
the treaty of peace was signed after the battle of York- 
town ?" "Why were we so long in making peace with 
Germany after the armistice had been signed ?" 

The pupils had been talking in an apparently intel- 
ligent manner about The League of Nations and the 
World War, but a lack of response to the foregoing 
questions told me that they were not understanding 
the fundamental laws of government. I was getting 
back from them only what the book gave, and they 
were not doing any constructive thinking. 

I knew that my problem was that of the average 
teacher. Besides a course in history, the class needed 
time on current topics; and their oral English was 
very poor. Something must be done to make the work 
more practical and to create interest. 



HISTORY 29y 

I took a mental inventory of my class and found 
them rich in possibilities. They had had a smattering 
of drill in parliamentary law, but had never used it in 
a practical way. It seemed to me that they had at 
hand all the needed material for work. Why not 
dramatize their lessons in current topics and history? 

As I said in the beginning, no one seemed to grasp 
why it took so long for conferences to accomplish re- 
sults. The time element and the immensity of the task 
did not seem to belong with the recited fact. Suddenly 
it occurred to me to give my pupils a lesson in the 
machinery of government. This thought led to my 
assignment. 

"To-morrow I want the class to organize as a legal 
body," I told them. "You are to elect a president, a 
vice president, and a secretary." (At this point we 
discussed the qualities of a good executive and of a 
capable secretary at some length.) "This organized 
body is to have control of the class work for one period 
each week, I making the assignment. Your first prob- 
lem is to draft a constitution of no more than eight 
and no less than five articles." (A committee of three 
pupils was named to bring to class a proposed draft.) 

The next day there was no lack of interest in the 
classroom. Rivalry added to the zest of the election. 
The boys, who were slightly in the minority, had dis- 
covered the principle "In union there is strength," and 
by simple political methods had won the election. 

The constitution was next presented, and, at the 
suggestion of one of the pupils, was considered article 
by article. One of the girls, whose hobby was gram- 
mar, objected to the wording of the first clause and 
suggested a change. The boys resented her attack, 
but she proved her point. The second article was pro- 



300 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

posed for adoption when the bell rang, and adjourn- 
ment was in order. 

"Let's go on with this to-morrow," came a chorus of 
voices, and one pupil even suggested that we omit the 
next class and complete the work. 

It took three recitations to get the "legal body" or- 
ganized and in proper running order, but I think that 
as a result they understand a little better just why con- 
ference work moves so slowly. My problem as the 
teacher was to find work for the class that would make 
their efforts worth while. Usually I found it easy to 
correlate some other class work, and sometimes I was 
helped by a problem from the pupils themselves. 

One day two boys came to me asking if we might 
change a certain part of our work. I would not make 
the change, but told them it meant the amending of 
their constitution, which the class would have to do. 
"How amendments are made" now became a living 
issue to the class, and I am sure it was more clear to 
them after they had performed the process. 

When we studied city government the pupils sat as 
a city council, each alderman discussing the light, heat, 
or sanitation of his precinct as the problems arose. 
We even held a special election and bonded the city for 
improvements. A session of county court afforded an 
opportunity to visit a trial. At our next meeting the 
boys arranged for a trial, having served papers on one 
of their classmates for speeding. 

We even sat as a council and discussed the then cur- 
rent topic, The League of Nations. Interest ran high, 
for we were working with world problems ; and I am 
sure the world's statesmen would have been astounded 
at the profound and prophetic wisdom of young Amer- 
ica, had they heard it speak. 



HISTORY 301 

CURRENT EVENTS IN THE RURAL 
SCHOOL 

By Harriet Spalding 

I find that the study of current events, in the rural 
school where I teach, is most interesting and profit- 
able. We have our current events period every Mon- 
day morning. There are usually a number of little 
folks who cannot manage the work alone. To them I 
assign a helper, that is, a pupil from one of the higher 
grades. Perhaps a sixth-grade boy will be the helper 
of a second-grade lad. In our school we have several 
copies of a weekly paper. The older boy is to select 
from the paper an interesting current topic and ex- 
plain it to the younger one. 

In class the children often present the events which 
they have found, in the form of questions. The ques- 
tioner is allowed to ask any pupil in the room to an- 
swer. After each one has given an answer or asked a 
question on the event chosen and the topics have been 
discussed we select a number of the most important 
topics. 

I write these on the blackboard and the children 
copy them in their notebooks. This is a very impor- 
tant part of the work, as it stimulates their interest. 
As every child likes to have his work chosen for the 
notebooks he will strive to select interesting and im- 
portant facts. The work in current events would be 
of no lasting value unless fixed in the pupils' memory 
in some way. The notebook work helps to do this. 

iWe have a regular monthly test in current events, 
as in other subjects, and the children study their note- 
books in preparation for the test. We sometimes have 
a current events match. This is conducted in exactly 



302 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

the same manner as the ordinary spelling match and 
creates much enthusiasm. If one cannot find time for 
this work it may be profitably substituted for the reg- 
ular history period once during the week. 

I am sure that any teacher who is willing to try this 
plan sincerely and thoroughly, will find that it makes 
real, live, little citizens of the pupils and gives them 
training which will be of value to them as they grow 
older and become high school pupils and, later, the 
young men and women voters of our land. 

KEEPING UP WITH THE BUSY WORLD 

By Verna C. Holmes 

In making a systematic study of present-day events, 
most teachers have difficulty in finding time enough to 
do the subject justice. This may be partly overcome 
by more careful planning of the daily lessons. Current 
events should be correlated with nearly all of the school 
subjects, especially geography, nature study, and read- 
ing. 

The following plan will be found helpful. Obtain 
from the school board, or have your pupils earn 
enough money for a subscription to a good Sunday 
newspaper, preferably one of national preeminence. 
It will be found to contain a review of the week's 
news, in pictures and short articles, presented in a 
way more easily studied than in the daily issues. Such 
a paper will reach even the remotest parts of the 
United States within four or five days after its publi- 
cation. If care is taken at the beginning in selecting 
the paper, very little censoring by the teacher will 
need to be done. However, it will of course be neces- 
sary to use good judgment in regard to doubtful pic- 



HISTORY 303 

tures and articles. If for any reason, something im- 
presses you as having even a tinge of harmf ulness for 
your little group of young Americans, clip it out. 

Have a convenient table or desk v^here this paper 
may always be found. Allow classes or groups to take 
regular turns reading it. Back numbers, if saved, 
should be filed neatly. If one does not care to save the 
whole paper, it is a good idea to clip out any parts that 
give promise of later usefulness. The children will be 
glad to help you do this. 

Do not overlook the advertisments in the paper. 
Often they contain the most recent information about 
raw materials, means of transportation, or factory 
methods. 

In arithmetic problems may be made about the 
goods advertised, the rates of rental for houses or 
rooms, the relative value of money in different coun- 
tries and so on. 

Occasionally a subject of vital interest to your own 
community will be discussed by writers of the highest 
authority. The editorials will give you topics for 
many interesting talks or debates. 

Properly guided by a tactful and understanding 
teacher, children will comprehend and enjoy a sur- 
prising amount of the world's news. 

"WE KNOW!" 

By Doris Beard 

"Teach the children how to reason. Teach them how 
to use facts. The facts themselves are not so impor- 
tant." Thus we are instructed by modern pedagogy. 

However, it is very plain that, important as this 
reasoning is, one must know some facts in order to ex- 



304 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

ercise the power to reason. The schools are criticized 
by many people who say that children leave the eighth 
grade knowing so few facts. We cannot deny that they 
might easily know more facts without overburdening 
their minds; but the modern curriculum is so full of 
new and vital things that there is little time left for 
the teaching of mere facts. 

I was appalled one day to find that half of my sixth 
grade actually could not give a correct answer to, 
"Why do we celebrate July Fourth?'* Further question- 
ing revealed these startling facts : Only eight could give 
the first and last name of the President of the United 
States ; five could not name the Governor of our state ; 
a dozen of the children did not know where the Gover- 
nor lives, although the Governor's home is only four 
miles from their school; none of them could tell me 
what officers their city had ; about fifteen of them knew 
nothing about the Liberty Bell; five or six said that 
Washington was the largest city in our country, and 
one said London. 

From that time on I have set aside ten minutes at 
the close of each session of school for the learning of 
mere facts. On one of our boards in large, red letters 
are the words "We Know." Under them we list each 
week five new facts learned. The children themselves 
suggest about half of the facts, such as : the names of 
the President, Governor, City Manager, and leading 
men of the day ; largest cities, rivers, and states ; why 
we celebrate various days; and facts about strikes, 
peace conferences and so forth. 

The children enjoy the period and are proud of the 
"We Know" board. Even with very little time spent 
in this way each day, it does not take many months for 
the class to collect a fund of important facts of all kinds. 



CIVICS 



TEACHING THE MEANING OF THE CON- 
STITUTION TO PRIMARY CHILDREN 

By Maude M. Grant 

In teaching the small children we must proceed, as 
it were, from the "known to the unknown." In other 
words, we must seek to develop the new ideas from 
facts and ideas already familiar to the mind of the 
child. 

The Constitution of the United States seems indeed 
a remote and difficult subject to present to small chil- 
dren. However, the little child knows what it means 
to obey, — "to mind." By judicious questioning it is 
possible to bring out the answers from the children 
themselves. Who looks after us in our homes? Fa- 
ther and mother. What do father and mother do? 
They give us food, clothes, take care of us, and make us 
mind. 

Why do we have to mind? Because father and 
mother know what is good for little boys and girls; 
they want them to be good and kind and honest and 
healthy. So father and mother make rules for little 
boys and girls to obey. If we do not obey these rules, 
what happens ? We are punished. 

We have rules in our school. They must be obeyed. 
These rules are made to help the boys and girls grow; 
into fine, useful men and women. 



306 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

By obeying the rules we will become kind, thought- 
ful, helpful, and considerate of the rights and proper- 
ties of others. When we know we are doing what is 
right, we are happy. Our fathers, our mothers, and 
our teachers all want us to be happy. When we are 
happy we can do a great deal of good. 

Rules are sometimes called laws. We have laws for 
our town. If a person breaks a law, if a man steals 
from another man, what happens? Yes, the police- 
man comes and takes him to jail. The jail is the place 
where the lawbreakers go. No one likes to go to jail, 
but if one breaks the law, then the law, in the person 
of the policeman, puts him in jail. Now you can see 
how the law protects everyone. It would never, never 
do to have bad people who are lawbreakers running 
all over our town, so the law, by putting the bad people 
in jail, takes care of us; and if we obey the law our- 
selves, we are happy and contented. 

A long time ago, little boys and girls, there were 
only Indians living in this beautiful country of ours. 
Then some white men came across the sea in a boat 
called the "Mayflower." These men built log houses, 
churches, and schools, and by and by they had towns 
and cities. 

After a while they called this country that they had 
settled the United States of America, and then our 
flag, the beautiful "Star Spangled Banner," became 
the emblem of our country. 

You have all heard of the great George Washington. 
Well, George Washington and his friends, who were 
great, and wise men, decided that they must make 
some laws for our country. They said: "We must 
make laws that will help our people. We must make 
laws that are wise and good and that will protect our 



CIVICS 307 

people from danger. We want our people to be happy 
and contented and to prosper. Our laws will give 
them rights. We want our laws to be the very best 
and most helpful laws that any people have ever had." 

So these wise men worked for many days and weeks 
and they made a set of laws which they called the 
Constitution of the United States. 

The Constitution is the law of our country and it is 
this Constitution that has made our country great. If 
it were not for the Constitution, we would have no 
country, no flag, no towns, no schools, no pleasant 
homes. So you see how important the Constitution is, 
and how much we owe to it and to the wise men who 
made it for us. 

Here is a little verse I have written for you to help 
you" remember about the Constitution and what it has 
done for us. 

The Constitution, our pride of state. 
Is what has made our country great. 
Its laws, so noble, clear, and free, 
Are what give us our liberty. 
Thus we enjoy its gifts of worth. 
The noblest document on earth. 

The "document" means the laws or Constitution of 
our country written by those wise Americans so many 
years ago. 

THE LITTLE CITIZENS' CLUB 

By^ Frances Meacham 

It is a trite old saying that we learn to do by doing, 
and it is a saying that we have applied to almost every 
branch of education except the making of citizens. 



308 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

For many years the idea seemed to be that obedience 
was the only phase of citizenship. Later/ elaborate 
systems of self-government were formulated for the 
city schools. But what of the one-room country 
school — could it have self-government, too? 

I once had a school of from twelve to fifteen pupils. 
Most of them were young, but some three or four were 
of the troublesome age. After studying the school for 
a short time, I decided that the worst boy among them 
was not really bad. He simply "hated to be bossed," 
as he would have expressed it. I had known the feel- 
ing myself, but I also knew the need of good order in 
the schoolroom. I decided on self-government. 

The first step was a talk on the need of government 
in the nation, the state, and the school. The children 
saw at once that there could be no order or justice 
without government. I explained the difference be- 
tween a monarchy (unlimited) and a republic, and 
asked which the children preferred. Of course, they 
were in favor of a republic. 

I asked the children if they would work for the 
good of the school if I allowed them to form a republic. 
They all agreed and signed a paper to that effect. I 
told them that as long as they lived up to that promise 
they might govern themselves; but that I should be 
breaking my contract if I let them harm the school. 

I had to help the children with their constitution, 
the preamble of which set forth the reasons for the 
step we were taking. Our only officers were a presi- 
dent, vice president, secretary, and two policemen. It 
was understood that the policemen were to do helpful 
things, rather than to arrest evildoers. 

I told the children to write on slips of paper the 
rules which they thought would be the best for the 



CIVICS 309 

school, and hand them in. I read these rules aloud. 
After we had talked about them, we voted on which 
ones we should adopt. Really, the children were more 
strict with themselves than I would have dared to be. 
Of course, they needed to try out some things for 
themselves, and so for a while there was a rule allow- 
ing them to whisper. They soon saw that this made un- 
necessary noise and disorder, and they voted against 
whispering. 

My "worst" boy went home and told what we had 
done. His father laughed and said that the boy would 
break all of the rules before a week was over. The 
boy replied that he was determined to obey them. He 
forgot a few times, but for the most part he lived up 
to the rules, and when he did forget he took the pun- 
ishment the rules recommended without a word of 
complaint. 

The children named themselves "The Little Citizens' 
Club." Their colors were purple for royalty and white 
for purity. Their officers were elected by ballot for 
one month. They held their meetings on Friday after 
the last recess. Even the second-grade children 
learned to preside at the meetings. 

The school work did not suffer, for the children were 
happy and contented and consequently made good 
progress. 

HOW CIVICS ^VAS CHANGED FROM A 
DRY TO AN INTERESTING SUBJECT 

By Catherine Hill 

It was the first day of school. I heard a pupil here 
and there make the remark, "How I hate civics." "It 
is so dry." "I wish I didn't have to study it." I re- 



310 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

solved that this year's work should prove that civics is 
not a dry subject but a very interesting one. 

I placed several small flags in prominent positions 
about the room. I talked to the pupils about the flag, 
what it means to us; its colors and what they repre- 
sent ; and our debt of loyalty to our flag and our coun- 
try. I then read to them, "America For Me," after 
which we drilled on the flag salute. 

For the next lesson the pupils learned the Preamble 
to the Constitution. The meaning of the terms an^ 
phrases was discussed. I followed this with a talk on 
*'Why we need laws" and "Our duty to the laws of our 
country." 

I required pupils to watch the daily papers and cur- 
rent magazines for events of importance and espe- 
cially for events bearing on the subject being studied. 
I decided that this would be a good time to use note- 
books. We obtained blank books,on the backs of which 
we stamped the seal of our state. Into these books we 
pasted clippings taken from the papers, pictures of 
present-day men, pictures of battleships, and of vari- 
ous industries. We also used the same books further 
on in the study of the state and county. 

From this time on it took but little effort on my part 
to keep up interest. The pupils became very enthusi- 
astic over the work and would often say when the class 
bell sounded, "What a short period this was to-day !" It 
was not long before they were telling me, "This is the 
best study we have." The main trouble was to keep 
down discussions that might lead away from the lesson 
of the day. I used the topic method for most of my 
teaching and gave every child the opportunity of ex- 
pressing his opinion on every subject brought up in 
class. 



CIVICS 311 

I invited a man in our community, who had been at- 
tending the state legislature, to give a special talk on 
"How the state legislature conducts its business meet- 
ings." He told the pupils about legislative procedure. 
He explained in detail the various committees and how 
they are timesavers. His talk was very interesting. 
It appealed to the pupils for it made the government 
of the state seem much more real to them. 

I always welcomed visitors into the class and tried 
to get them interested in our discussions. It was a 
pleasant surprise to the pupils to have a visit from the 
principal or someone outside the school who would give 
us a special talk on: "Citizenship," "Patriotism," or 
"Americanization." 

I did not fail to call for the flag salute at least once 
a week, and now and then I would ask for some pas- 
sage from the Constitution. I would usually ask, 
"What does the Constitution say about this?" 

Now and then I would assign patriotic poems and 
songs to be memorized. I insisted upon every member 
of the class memorizing the words of "The Star 
Spangled Banner." 

By this time, the pupils were so enthusiastic that 
they asked for a large flag to place in the room where 
it could be seen as they saluted. I wrote to a specialty 
company that offered a flag five by eight feet to a class 
which would dispose of a gross of lead pencils at five 
cents each. I sent for the pencils and they were all 
disposed of in three days. We received the flag, and a 
premium picture of two of our most prominent Amer- 
icans, for the prompt sale of the pencils. 

I kept on hand a quantity of small flags for use on 
patriotic days. On these days each pupil was pre- 
sented with a small flag to pin on dress or coat. 



312 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

After completing an intensive study of the Consti- 
tution, I took up the study of the governments of the 
various nations of the world. We discussed what it 
takes to make a nation, the formation and the growth 
of nations, and the development of the state. I fol- 
lowed this with a close study of the government of our 
own state, proceeding in a similar manner to that in 
which I presented the study of the nation. The pupils 
then took up the study of the government of our own 
county, town, and school district. 

THRIFT AN ESSENTIAL OF GOOD 
CITIZENSHIP 

By Irene Goddard 

Thrift is rather a new subject in our curriculum 
but one that promises to be very important if pre- 
sented in the right way. I am teaching in a mining 
town composed of Americans and several different 
classes of foreigners. The majority of the parents 
earn good wages but spend as they go. The children, 
as a rule, have money given to them but they had been 
in the habit of spending it as fast as they received it. 
They did not know the meaning of saving. 

A hard problem confronted me. I outlined my les- 
sons to teach the meaning of thrift; why a person 
should be thrifty; and how to obtain that goal. I de- 
cided to help the children save money as I knew that 
this would be a great service to them. 

In our state we have a Stamp Banking System 
of which I decided to make use. I secured my mate- 
rials for establishing the system from the State De- 
partment of Education and presented the plan to the 
school. The plan is very simple. A Stamp Book about 



CIVICS 313 

four by seven inches in size is given to each pupil. On 
the front of the book are the words "Stamp Banking 
System" and space for the pupil's name, address, 
grade, school, and the name of the bank. The book 
contains ten blank pages on each of which is room to 
paste twenty stamps valued at five cents each. The 
children purchase these stamps from the teacher who 
deposits the money in the bank to the credit of her 
particular school. When a pupil has one page full of 
stamps he takes it to the bank, endorses it, and is given 
a pass book showing his deposit of one dollar. 

The children were very enthusiastic and entered 
heartily into the plan. Several bought as many as one 
page of stamps at one time. I soon found some par- 
ents who objected to their children's buying the 
stamps. On investigation I found that they had bought 
other kinds of stamps and lost some money and that 
they did not understand our saving plan. I knew it 
would not be possible to explain the plan in a meeting 
of the parents as many of them are foreigners who do 
not understand our language; so I wrote a letter ex- 
plaining the system in detail so that they would under- 
stand that their children would not lose their money. 
This letter removed the doubts from the parents* 
minds regarding our plan. The foreign people took 
their letter to some one speaking their language and 
ours too and had it read and now they are the most en- 
thusiastic savers I have. 

Various means may be employed to maintain inter- 
est in savings accounts. Our plan has been very suc- 
cessful here and is not difficult to handle. Seventy 
per cent of my pupils have savings accounts and the 
sum of one hundred and thirty-five dollars has been 
deposited by them. 



314 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

RELATING CIVICS TO EVERYDAY LIFE 

By Marjorie E. Chaffee 

Since many pupils find the study of civics dry and 
uninteresting, it is our work as teachers to make it 
such a live subject that each pupil will be inspired 
with a desire to learn about the working of our gov- 
ernment. 

We must present such seemingly dull topics as the 
naturalization laws and the recall and referendum in 
an interesting way. Above everything else, it is our 
duty to train the pupils to become good Americans who 
respect the nation's laws, so that they may take the bur- 
dens from the shoulders of this generation and bear 
them successfully. 

If one asks those who have studied civics how the 
government is related to their everyday life, they make 
vague answers or reply that there is no connection be- 
tween them. So let us teach the children that it is to 
the government that they owe freedom of speech, our 
public schools, and the protection which they receive 
at home and in other countries. 

The first week, I have the pupils learn the Preamble 
to the Constitution. We mention its purpose and the 
meaning of it. They seem to enjoy learning it because 
there is a certain dignity and harmonic sound to the 
words. 

Then I introduce the study of home government. 
We talk about the duties which parents owe to their 
children and, in return, what the children owe their 
parents. Next, comes the study of school government. 

When taking up the subject of voting we obtain 
samples of ballots, and study their form. Then we 
make ballots and have mock nominations and elections. 



CIVICS 315 

Some time might be spent in the making of speeches 
for the candidates. 

Civics classes should be taught parliamentary rules 
of order so that all meetings of classes or societies may 
be conducted in the proper manner. 

A method which I have found successful in teaching 
about local offices is to have the pupils make a table, 
listing the office, name of officer, length of term, and 
whether the office is elective or appointive. The class 
enjoys doing this kind of work and takes much inter- 
est in it, because most of the officers are known to 
them. Even the fathers or mothers may be holding 
some of these offices. 

When teaching local government I emphasize the 
fact that taxes are used to buy schoolbooks, pay the 
teachers* salaries, and build schoolhouses. 

By all means, when studying about the courts, let 
the class visit a courthouse and note the arrangement 
of the courtroom. If possible, visit one while a trial 
is being held. I find that court procedure is taught 
more easily when visualized in this way. Visits to 
other public institutions are also advisable. If visits 
cannot be made by the entire class, individuals may 
make them and give a report to the class. A mock 
trial will teach better than anything else the methods 
employed for public trials. 

We study the development of the Postal System 
and the Treasury Department, showing their impor- 
tance and close relationship to us. The pupils like to 
write the autobiography of a letter, telling of its trav- 
els to the dead letter office or from country to coun- 
try. 

Drawings are a great help in the teaching of civics. 
Maps of the state, locating county, township, borough, 



316 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

and schoolhouse are drawn. Also, a map may be 
drawn showing the judicial districts. A drawing of a 
courtroom will help pupils greatly. A collection of 
pictures of great men is interesting to have, for the 
pupils learn to recognize a large number of them. 

I find that much can be learned by debates. If there 
is a literary society in the school, the debates can be 
given at its meetings. It is advisable to have one or 
two a month, according to the amount of time it takes 
to prepare for them. 

To make the study of civics a success, the teacher 
must be interested and have a broad knowledge of the 
subject. She must be able to give illustrations and 
connect the subject with present-day events, when- 
ever possible to do so. 

Let us in all our teaching of civics endeavor to make 
the pupils good American citizens. Teach them to 
love their country and their flag. 



HEALTH EDUCATION 



THE BANK OF HEALTH 

By Estelle C Batchelder 

There is no greater factor in education that will pro- 
mote efficiency than that of training in the care of the 
body. All projects which tend to develop the mind 
are useless unless the recipients are physically fit. 

One very effective means of helping the child to ac- 
quire bodily fitness is to establish in the schoolroom a 
"Bank of Health." This has met with great success in 
the fifth grade of our grammar school. Some sixty 
children have become heavy depositors. They have 
bank books in which the entries mount in a most satis- 
factory manner. Consequently the children come to 
school every day with whiter teeth, brighter eyes, red- 
der cheeks, and with their faces and hands clean. 

This Bank of Health is very easily introduced, re- 
quiring only a short space of time and not interfering 
with the regular studies. The time taken is that usu- 
ally allotted to opening exercises — from five to ten 
minutes. In order to get the full cooperation of the 
pupils, it is necessary to present the subject in an at- 
tractive manner. 

To put the plan into active working order officers 
are elected, consisting of a president, a head cashier, 
assistant cashiers, and receiving tellers. The office of 
president is held by the teacher, and the remaining 



318 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

officers are chosen from the pupils. The president ap- 
points the officers for the first week. Afterwards they 
are appointed in the order of their credits — as a re- 
ward of merit. Each pupil has a bank book which he 
made from a small notebook. The nine rules of 
health are listed on each page, at the right of which 
spaces are ruled off for the days of the week. Thus 
there is a page for each week. 

The following health rules are observed : 

I. Sleep nine hours with windows open. 
II. Brush teeth the first thing in the morning 
and before retiring. 

III. Brush teeth after each meal. 

IV. Brush and comb hair. 

V. Wash face and hands before each meal. 
VI. Eat a good breakfast (cereal, or fruit, 

bread and butter, egg, and milk). 
VII. Take three deep breaths of fresh air three 

times daily. 
VIII. Exercise in open air for two hours. 
IX. Take a hot bath at least twice a week. 
Each morning the bank customers get their deposit 
slips from the tellers, upon which they make entry of 
the rules they have kept the preceding day. On Mon- 
day they report for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. 
These slips are then collected and entered in the bank 
books by the receiving tellers, a blue star being given 
for each rule observed. Every Friday the assistant 
cashiers find the totals for the week, and the head 
cashier places the following stars in the books : a gold 
star for fifty-five or more blue stars ; a silver star for 
from fifty to fifty-five blue stars; a red star for from 
forty-five to fifty blue stars; a green star for from 
forty to forty-five blue stars. 



HEALTH EDUCATION 319 

That this project meets with the approval of the 
parents is demonstrated by their cooperation in aiding 
the children to accomplish each rule. In fact, the pu- 
pils are so eager that many of them request the proper 
food for breakfast so that they may win their stars. 
One girl who disliked milk and eggs decided to have 
French toast for breakfast, thus combining bread, but- 
ter, egg, and milk. (Rule VI.) On rainy days exer- 
cise is taken on the piazzas or in tents. (Rule VIII.) 
If windows are closed during a thunder shower, they 
are immediately opened after it has passed over. 

The pupils are most enthusiastic over the carrying 
out of these rules, and every one is a gold star pupil. 

HEALTH EDUCATION IN PLACE OF 
ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY 

By" Sara Dorcy 

A crowded course of study is no argument against 
introducing health education into the curriculum. 
We can well spare most of our anatomy and physi- 
ology if we can substitute a live course in health edu- 
cation — a broader term than hygiene. 

What if our boys and girls are unable to name their 
teeth, if they know how, and when, and why they 
should care for them, and do it. What if our boys and 
girls do not know the names of even the larger mus- 
cles of their bodies? It is of far more importance in 
their lives to learn to appreciate physical perfection 
and to know what kind of exercise will best develop 
these muscles. 

I am not advocating this practical subject at the ex- 
pense of culture. There is little culture in memorizing 
— not learning — a grist of technicalities in anatomy 



320 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

and physiology only to forget them in a few years. 
An educational system that does not develop a healthy- 
body and a healthy outlook on the problems of life is 
a miserable failure. 

As a primary teacher I plan to interest my wee 
charges in the phases of personal and public health 
and sanitation that it is possible for them to grasp. 
To make it still more effective I assign them very sim- 
ple tasks that illustrate my point. The children are 
responsible for the appearance of the yard. It is their 
pride and they keep it very clean. They fight mosqui- 
toes in a small way by watching rain barrels and put- 
ting kerosene on the water. Scraps of food that are of 
no use are burned. They also fight flies very strenu- 
ously. These and many other simple tasks that local 
conditions may suggest will teach lasting lessons in 
public health and civic economy. 

Another health lesson is personal cleanliness. Some 
children are naturally clean. Others can be won over 
to form habits of cleanliness by one incentive or an- 
other. It is my intention to encourage habits of per- 
sonal cleanliness in the young child so that as time 
goes on such habits will become instinctive. This all 
sounds visionary but the reaction in my class is en- 
couraging enough to keep me enthusiastic. 

I have a little game that I play with my pupils. I 
pretend that I am their mother and they are my chil- 
dren. Sometimes I am their aunt and they come to 
visit me. Sometimes we have a party and I am the 
hostess. The purpose of this game is to teach habits 
of regularity, promptness, cleanliness, cheerfulness, 
health, manners, diet, and any other little points that 
come up unexpectedly. The first grader is not too 
young to learn to refuse to eat harmful foods. He is 



HEALTH EDUCATION 321 

not too young to take pride in his physical improve- 
ment. 

This is the way we play : — I say "Eight o'clock, chil- 
dren." They stop whatever they are doing, brush 
their teeth and drop their heads on their desks. I tell 
them to think of something pleasant. This suggests 
sweet dreams of perfect health. In a few minutes I 
say cheerfully, "Time to get up." All heads come 
up. They make motions of dressing, brushing teeth, 
washing, and combing their hair. They turn to the 
windows, which are open, and take a certain number 
of deep breaths. They skip lightly around the room 
and back to their places which we then pretend are in 
the dining room. 

Breakfast is then served. I insist on smiling faces 
and a cheery greeting. I offer the children different 
foods which they accept or politely refuse depending 
upon their judgment of a proper diet. For example, a 
child might answer, "No, thank you, I never drink cof- 
fee," or "Yes, if you please. I drink all the milk I can 
get. I want to grow strong," or "No, thank you, I 
do not eat much sweet food," or "Yes, please, mush 
will make me grow tall and strong." 

When we have dinner or lunch I teach them why 
they should choose brown or coarse bread in prefer- 
ence to white, when both are put on the table. I sing 
the praises of vegetables, fruits, soups, butter, milk, 
eggs and other foods of recognized merit for a child's 
diet. 

I am not sure that all of the pupils of my class have 
been won over to this diet reform but I do think that, 
from the cheerful eager spirit of our little games and 
the well-developed idea of improving their physical 
condition, much good Is bound to result. 



322 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

A CONCRETE DEMONSTRATION OF THE 
VALUE OF NUTRITION 

By Orpha Totten 

The teacher, better than anyone else, knows the true 
state of her pupils' health, for it bears so directly upon 
aU of the schoolroom activities. Many parents do not 
seem to be keen observers of their children's health. 

My first term of school was taught in the third and 
fourth grades of a small town in western Kansas. 
There were over thirty pupils enrolled in these two 
grades. I soon noticed that a few looked thin and life- 
less, as if they did not have the proper food to eat. In 
other words, they were underfed. They were not nat- 
urally dull, but simply lacked the vitality to enable 
them to do the standard work for their grade. I 
watched these pupils very closely, and always their 
work was below the average class work. 

The people in this community were well-to-do, and I 
knew that each child had plenty to eat. The cause of 
the children's condition lay in the fact that their par- 
ents were ignorant of the principles of nutrition. 
Having found the cause of the noticeable cases of mal- 
nutrition, the next step, therefore, was to find the cure. 
Here the greatest difficulty presented itself because it 
is so hard to make the parents realize the importance 
of proper food. In the rural communities, especially, 
parents are prone to look upon any innovation with 
more or less suspicion, so I could not begin by telling 
the parents that their children were underfed. It re- 
quires tact to deal with such a subject. 

After considering the problem for several days, I 
decided that the best way to bring this matter before 
the parents was to do so through the children them- 



HEALTH EDUCATION 323 

selves. I noted that the school possessed no equipment 
for teaching the children the real need of being physi- 
cally up to standard. This school was never visited by 
an inspector, and visiting nurses and dentists v^^ere un- 
known. Thus, the success of any attempted campaign 
depended entirely upon the teacher. With the assist- 
ance of the superintendent, I succeeded in borrowing 
a scale from a grocery store. Equipped with the scale, 
a yardstick, and a chart of standard weights and 
heights, I proceeded to get the children interested. I 
placed the chart in a conspicuous place in the front of 
the room and the scale near it. 

When the pupils began to arrive the next morning, 
they gathered around the chart and examined it. I 
offered no suggestion until a number seemed to be in- 
terested in it. Then I approached the group and asked 
a well-fed boy how old he was. I measured his height 
and told him that he should weigh, according to his 
age and height, fifty-four pounds. The scale showed 
weight of fifty-seven pounds. After I had weighed 
and measured a few of the other children and showed 
them how to use the chart, the rest of the pupils want- 
ed to get weighed and measured to see if they came up 
to the standard. Some were surprised to learn that 
they were below weight ; others were proud of the fact 
that they were above the average. During the time 
that I was weighing and measuring the children, I lost 
no opportunity to tell of the relation between the gen- 
eral welfare of the body and the eating of the right 
kinds and amounts of food. I illustrated by means of 
the different fuels used in engines, and the children 
completed the illustration by telling of the various 
grades of oils and gasoline which are used for auto- 
mobiles. 



324 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Of course, the children discussed the difference in 
weights of the pupils, and their parents were, no 
doubt, informed of the simple experiment which I had 
started at school. It was not long before I began to see 
results. Those who were underfed inquired of the 
well-fed what they ate. The mothers took the matter 
in hand and began to believe that food really did have 
something to do with the children's physical condition. 
Some of the mothers even came to me (I suppose at 
the request of their children) and asked me to make 
some suggestions in regard to their children's diet. 
This was what I had been working for, as it was im- 
possible to extend this help unless it was desired. 

I kept the chart posted and made a graph, plotting 
the weights and heights of the different children. 
When one gained or grew in height, the change was 
recorded on the graph. The children eagerly watched 
the graph, and seemed willing to help their playmates 
to reach the standard so that the room could have a 
fairly normal curve. In the course of a few months 
there was marked improvement in the school work of 
the children. 

THE CHILDREN'S HEALTH BAND 

By Leeta M. Lingle 

I have in my first and second grades fifty pupils from 
six to eight years of age. 

The first week of school I organized a Health Band. 
The children brought money to school to purchase the 
instruments, which were not to cost more than twenty- 
five cents. 

At roll call every morning each pupil is required to 
respond by standing for inspection for clean hands, 



HEALTH EDUCATION 325 

neatly combed hair, and clean clothes. A perfect in- 
spection from a pupil for a month raises his general 
average five per cent, and also entitles him to wear a 
yellow cap each time the band plays. Each month a 
silver star is placed upon his cap, which signifies that 
he has had a perfect monthly inspection. At the end 
of the term the child who has received a silver star for 
each month wins a gold star. Once a month the band 
plays for one of the other rooms or visitors. Every 
child plays in the band and all are eager to appear in 
a yellow cap. 

On one occasion the Health Band entertained a gath- 
ering of about four hundred persons, and each child 
wore a yellow cap. The band was accompanied by a 
piano and furnished an interesting program consist- 
ing of bird whistle solos, songs and instrumental 
pieces, each division carrying its own part. 

The yellow caps are made of cambric, one yard mak- 
ing four caps. This material has proved to be very 
economical, because it does not wear out with the con- 
stant folding of the caps. 

The Health Band consists of ten drums at twenty- 
five cents each, fifteen tambourines at twenty-five 
cents each, five bird whistles at five cents each, and 
ten sets of bells at ten cents each. 

CLEANLINESS THE FIRST LAW OF 
HEALTH 

By Mayme Leonard 

I had come to a railroad, box-factory town without 
making much change in the teaching plans which I had 
followed for three years previously in a clean little 
country town. 



326 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Although knowing that I was in the roughest part 
of the town, where there were few permanent homes 
made, where the mothers of a great many children 
worked in the factory and had very little time to spend 
with their children, I was not prepared for the rows of 
grimy faces and frowzy heads that met my gaze on 
that first morning. 

Still, there were many bright faces and keen eyes, 
so I was not wholly discouraged. Until the natural 
timidity for the "new teacher" wore off, and the chil- 
dren felt at home, I did nothing. 

One day a small girl had a toothache, so I found my 
first opportunity to begin talking about health habits 
and cleanliness. After we had learned all we could 
about the teeth, how they are built, the effects of dirty 
teeth, and how to keep them clean and strong, I prom- 
ised the children small tubes of tooth paste. They 
were very much interested and anxious to have the 
paste, which I ordered immediately from a leading 
tooth paste company. 

When this important step on the road to cleanliness 
had been taken, I said to the children: "I know that 
your nice, clean white teeth feel sorry when they look 
out and see dirty faces around them and dirty hands 
coming up to see them." So we began on the hands, 
face, and finger nails. 

One thing led to another until we had discussed, be- 
sides the above points, the importance of always hav- 
ing a handkerchief, and how to use it ; drinking cups ; 
neat hair; neat shoes and stockings; harm of tea and 
coffee ; and need of fresh air in bedrooms at night. 

To keep all of these things continually in the minds 
of the pupils and help them to remember, I made on 
the blackboard a chart like the following : 



HEALTH EDUCATION 327 

Did Did Not 

Clean Faces — 
Clean Hands — 
Clean Nails — 
Clean Teeth- 
Neat Hair — 
Neat Shoes and Hose- 
Handkerchiefs — 
Drinking Cups — 
Coffee- 
Fresh Air at Night — 

Under the words "Did" and "Did Not" I wrote the 
number of children answering to each item. It took a 
very few minutes each morning to inspect hands, nails, 
faces, hair, and shoes ; and I accepted their reports on 
the other items. 

The children were so anxious to be numbered in the 
"Did" column that often they would bring at noon a 
handkerchief or cup which had been forgotten in the 
morning, and ask me to change the number. 

There was a decided improvement in the appear- 
ance of the children in a short time, and at the close of 
the year they would hardly have been recognized as 
the same group of neglected, unkempt children who 
had greeted me the first day of school. 

Children need to be encouraged and commended for 
what they do. I tried to get the children to feel a re- 
sponsibility toward making the chart a perfect one. 
Whenever we had a better one than usual I invited the 
other teachers in to see it. This made the children 
realize that I was proud of their endeavor. 

They, too, were proud of their record, and never 
tired of reporting the necessary information for the 
chart. Whenever I forgot or neglected it, some child 



328 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

with unusually clean finger nails or one who had 
cleaned his teeth that morning generally reminded me 
that I had not yet asked them all the questions. 

Since that year, I have used about the same method, 
adding health songs, stories, plays, and the making of 
health posters. 

Health Crusade work is a wonderful power in the 
school. However, the plan is a rather difficult one to 
use in the primary grades because of the time that is 
required for filling out the blanks for the children, 
since they are too young to attend to it themselves. 

RELATING SCHOOL ACTIVITIES TO 
HEALTH 

By~ Erna M. Shaw 

I feel it my duty as a public school teacher to teach 
right health habits and to encourage the children to 
practice them not only at school but also in their 
homes. The mothers, of course, have their children's 
well-being at heart, but either do not realize the neces- 
sity of instilling right health habits early in life, or 
are so busy with their domestic cares that they become 
negligent of this important duty. I consider this in- 
struction the most vital of any in the curriculum for 
the simple reason that every other subject is so greatly 
dependent upon and influenced by it. 

When the teacher makes plans for her lessons for the 
following day, she should keep in mind this question, 
"In what way can I introduce at least one new health 
principle or enlarge upon one already learned?" 

Let me illustrate my meaning. I find an opportu- 
nity during geography recitations to discuss healthful 
living conditions and the merits of the foods raised in 



HEALTH EDUCATION 329 

different countries. I mention that where the race 
works and exercises a healthy nation results. 

When my arithmetic classes learn to tell time I 
teach the children to count the number of hours of 
sleep that they get, and to place upon the clock the 
hours at which meals should be eaten and the hours for 
rising and retiring. They also learn to measure their 
height and to determine what they should weigh. 
They compare this with their weight which they re- 
cord every month. When studying liquid measure- 
ments we often play that we are fanners selling milk. 
This is a good way to teach the value of milk. 

When school began in the fail I placed sc number 
above each hook where the wraps were hung, also 
above each hook where the cups and towels were hung. 
I gave each child a number, and explained to him that 
he should hang his coat, towel, and cup on the hooks 
below the number corresponding to his. 

We take up and discuss the health chores as they 
appear upon the record blanks given out by the Red 
Cross. The children keep the first rule by washing be- 
fore each meal. I gave them each a sample bar of soap 
to instill the habit of cleanliness. 

Every morning we check up on the number who 
have clean hands, face, neck, ears, teeth, finger nails, 
and hair well-combed. If there seems to be a lack of 
interest here divide the number of pupils into factions 
and see if competition does not arouse more interest. 
I divided the group so as to have the boys against the 
girls. This plan proved very successful. 

We have a toothbrush drill quite often. I instruct 
the children as to the proper method of brushing the 
teeth. There are a number of songs and verses that 
can be used in connection with this drill. Space does 



330 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

not permit the giving of any here but they may be 
found in school magazines. These verses as well as 
those about other health chores may be learned for 
language or the Friday afternoon exercises. I gave 
each child a sample of good tooth paste when we had 
our first drill. 

We make health posters illustrating every health 
rule. We cut the letters for some of them and print 
others with our rubber printing outfit. Old magazines 
furnish most of the pictures. 

The children who keep things other than food and 
drink from their mouths have their names put upon the 
board in colored chalk. They choose the color they de- 
sire. The names remain here until the rule is violated. 
They must be encouraged to be honest about reporting 
for themselves. 

During their drawing lessons the children each 
draw a daisy. Every morning they color a petal if 
they have brought a clean handkerchief. Each child 
is anxious to have his daisy colored first so tries to 
remember his handkerchief every day. 

We spend much time making charts and menus and 
studying government bulletins when discussing the 
subject of foods. The children take the bulletins home 
for their mothers to use. We have a supervised lunch 
at noon which furnishes at least one warm dish. 
Every child brings his bottle of milk daily. I find this 
a good time to instruct the children in table etiquette. 
I tell them about the bad effects of fast eating. I do 
not allow the children to leave their places until they 
have finished eating, removed the spread upon which 
they had been eating, folded it and put it away. We 
make this hour as pleasant as possible as it is so es- 
sential to proper digestion. 



HEALTH EDUCATION 331 

When we play outdoor games in winter the older 
ones help the little ones with their coats and overshoes. 
They have all learned the healthful reason for keeping 
on warm wraps while outside. When it is too cold or 
stormy to play outside I direct the physical energy of 
the children indoors. We never fail to allow extra 
fresh air to enter before taking these indoor exercises. 

Last spring we had a fly-swatting campaign. All 
of us took part in this and checked up often to see 
who was ahead. 

Every spring and fall we clean the school yard. 
This instills in the children a desire to have their 
homes clean and attractive. The children take pride 
in the result of their labor and try to keep the yard, as 
well as the schooihouse, clean. 

The pupils wrote letters to the county nurse, telling 
her what they do to become healthy. When she sent a 
reply we posted it in the room. The children are 
pleased to know that she approves of their efforts. 
They have all tried hard to carry out the health pro- 
gram, and with barely an exception they have the cer- 
tificates of enrollment and Health Crusader pins. 

HOT LUNCHES IN SPITE OF GREAT 
OBSTACLES 

By Irma Luedtke 

Teaching in a state where the winter air is very in- 
vigorating and pupils have long, cold rides to school, I 
realize the importance of the hot school lunch. 

I didn't feel competent to try hot lunches during my 
first year of rural teaching, but now I see no reason 
why I should have felt so ; as the benefits derived from 
the lunches are well worth the extra work. My school 



332 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

has certainly increased in interest and efficiency, as a 
result. 

My equipment consists of a small cupboard, an old 
kerosene stove, a teakettle, a fair-sized kettle, a frying 
pan, a dish pan, and a water pail. The school board 
provided this equipment, and furnishes the kerosene. 
The children bring their own cups, plates and spoons. 
The mothers help by lending a can opener, butcher 
knife, mixing spoons, and jars. These will be re- 
turned at the end of the year. 

The food supply seemed to be the hardest problem 
at first. The patrons were willing enough to contrib- 
ute, but as each one has a large family, with no crops 
or gardens, there was very little money to spare. I 
finally decided to ask each pupil to bring five cents a 
week. With this money I purchased sugar, cocoa, 
beans, and various other staple groceries. Now that 
our cupboard is well-stocked, we bring only five cents 
apiece a month, to buy sugar and cocoa. Vegetables 
are so scarce here this year that the children cannot 
bring them. For this reason I bought a supply of car- 
rots and onions which I keep at my boarding place, 
bringing them to school as needed. We bought milk 
at first, but now each pupil brings a cupful for his 
own use. 

The patrons are very generous in giving what they 
have. Mothers like to send treats, such as chickens, 
meat balls, and stews. 

I have an ordinary heater and use it more than the 
oil stove. I have no oven and as there were several 
baked dishes I wished to try, I resorted to the ash 
pan of the heater. I have baked com, beans, and po- 
tatoes in this way. I put the food in a large cast-iron 
frying pan with a tight cover and bring it to the boil- 



HEALTH EDUCATION 333 

ing point on the top of the stove. Then I shake down 
some red hot ashes and place the frying pan on them. 
One must be careful to close up the bottom of the 
stove to keep in the heat. 

Some of the dishes we serve are: potato chowder, 
escalloped potatoes, baked potatoes, creamed potatoes, 
creamed carrots, escalloped corn, cocoa, rice pudding, 
chocolate pudding, and all kinds of soups. The pupils 
are very fond of soups. 

I have a small school and therefore not very much 
help. The three largest boys take turns carrying the 
water which must be brought from a distance of a 
half-mile. We use snow water for dish washing. 

The six girls do the kitchen work in pairs. I do the 
more difficult cooking, but the girls are responsible 
for the senang and the cleanliness of the kitchen. 
They furnish their own aprons and towels. Every 
Thursday they may cook any special dish that they de- 
sire. They certainly are proud of our kitchen, which 
is located in a corner of the girls' cloakroom. 

LET THE CHILDREN PREPARE THE 
HOT LUNCH 

By Ada Marsh 

As I am a teacher in a one-room rural school, and 
have thirty-two pupils enrolled, the hot lunches at first 
seemed a problem rather difticult to manage. 

As I have a class every minute of the day, it was 
impossible for me to supervise the work closely, so it 
seemed necessary to improvise a plan by which the pu- 
pils could work independently. 

I choose four pupils each week ; two of the older ones 
and two of the younger ones. I then divide these pu- 



534 



PEDAGOGICAL PEP 



pils into Groups I and II, an older pupil and a younger 
pupil in each group. 

To prevent any disputes about time and duties of 
each group, I post on the wall, in the part of the room 
we use for a kitchen, a schedule as follows : 

Duties of Group I. 

1. Prepare, cook, and serve lunch. 

2. Heat water for dishes. 

3. Put slips in dinner pails, telling what should be 
brought for to-morrow's lunch. 

Duties of Group II. 

1. Pass dinner pails. 

2. Wash dishes. 

3. Sweep and clean kitchen. 



Group I. 
Helen and 

Alice 
Lillian and 

Hazel 
Corice and 

Clarence 



Time 
Oct. 24 to Oct. 28 
Oct. 31 to Nov. 4 
Nov. 7 to Nov. 11 



Group II. 
Alvin and 

Raymond 
Earle and 

Marion 
Everett and 

Marie 



I keep this schedule posted all the time so that the 
children only need to refer to it to find when they 
are to work and what they must do. 

Near this card, I tack a booklet containing a list of 
dishes that are to be served each day for a month, the 
materials that are needed for each dish and the direc- 
tions for preparing it. 

For instance, if the pupils in Group I want to know 
what to put on the dinner-pail slips Monday night, 
they go to the booklet and find a list of the materials 
needed for the dish to be served on Tuesday. 



HEALTH EDUCATION 335 

Class work is not discontinued until lunch is served 
and dinner pails are passed. Then the children are 
allowed to talk, but must remain at their desks until 
a quarter after twelve. 

This plan may take considerable of the teacher's 
time in its preparation, but I am sure the worry and 
responsibility saved are well worth the time and 
energy spent in preparing it. 

THE HOT LUNCH AS A PROJECT 

By^ Gladys Starke 

I was teaching in a one-room rural school of twenty 
pupils where the children had to eat a cold, unappetiz- 
ing lunch. There was little interest, and I was al- 
most desperate, when our county home demonstra- 
tor suggested that I put hot lunches in the school. 
As I had met only a few patrons, I knew I was facing 
quite a problem; but I immediately went to see my 
directors, and, though dubious as to results, they said 
I had their support. I then sent notes to all the 
mothers in the district, asking them to come on a cer- 
tain afternoon and help us plan our work. 

On the appointed afternoon, there were nine moth- 
ers and several fathers present. The home demon- 
strator also was there, and gave us a very interesting 
talk, explaining the best system for, and the value of, 
hot lunch in the school, from the standpoint of the 
mother, child, and teacher. 

When we asked for volunteers to donate equipment, 
the response was very gratifying. One mother of- 
fered an oil stove, and others offered a cupboard and 
a table. We decided to have a pie supper and candy 
sale to secure funds to complete our equipment. 



336 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

The days preceding our supper were very inter- 
esting, as the pupils were so enthusiastic over our 
"little kitchen," which was to occupy one half of our 
large cloak hall. 

Wherever possible the project was correlated with 
regular class work. For seat work, my primary 
class made invitations for the supper, and the third 
and fourth grades made posters to advertise it. For 
language work the advanced classes wrote advertise- 
ments, the best of which was to be sent to the paper. 

For arithmetic work, the advanced classes com- 
puted the amount of paper necessary to decorate the 
school, and a committee was chosen for this purpose. 

Our supper was a big success, the proceeds amount- 
ing to nearly eighty dollars. Shortly after this, we 
secured the rest of our equipment, which consisted of 
individual bowls and cups of heavy china; squares of 
white oilcloth for desks, tables, and benches ; and such 
utensils as teakettle, stewpans, dishpan, measuring 
cups, knives, and spoons. 

The purchase of this outfit furnished many prac- 
tical problems for use in the arithmetic classes. The 
making of chairs, benches and tables gave opportunity 
for manual training at recesses and noon. 

All pupils between ten and eighteen organized a 
hot lunch club, and they derived many benefits from 
this formal work. They learned much concerning 
parliamentary law and also gained self-confidence. 

Besides the usual officers, the pupils elected a chief 
cook, assistant cook, dish washers, and chore boys. It 
was the duty of the chief cook to plan and serve one 
hot dish every day for two weeks ; check up supplies ; 
make out orders ; and see that the assistant completed 
her work properly. The assistant cook helped the cook 



HEALTH EDUCATION 337 

and superintended the dish washing and the cleaning 
of the kitchen. Each child was required to carry his 
dishes to the kitchen and leave his desk clean. 

Only wholesome food, such as beans, rice, soups, 
cocoa, potatoes, and puddings were prepared. We 
asked for volunteers to bring certain articles, the 
staples being purchased in town. 

In a few days after our project was started I began 
to see the many benefits of the hot lunch. Deport- 
ment and scholarship were improved, and the chil- 
dren seemed much brighter, quicker and more inter- 
ested in their work. Table etiquette was taught inci- 
dentally, and the value of milk and wholesome food 
was emphasized. The children readily accepted new 
responsibilities and their mothers were much pleased 
with their attitude toward home duties. 

Our geography class was made more vital by study- 
ing about rice, cocoa, tapioca, and other foods which 
we were serving at school. The children enjoyed find- 
ing the homes of these foods on our maps. 

In language classes, letters were written to agri- 
cultural stations for bulletins; and recipes were ex- 
changed with other schools. Some of the girls col- 
lected these recipes and made booklets for their moth- 
ers for Christmas. 

The physiology class work was not neglected, but 
was made very interesting and practical by working 
out such problems as "Values of Milk," "What We 
Should Eat," and "Values of Cleanliness, Fresh Air 
and Sunshine." This last problem was carried out by 
keeping the kitchen immaculate. 

In the latter part of the term, when the days were 
;warm, we discontinued our hot lunches; but there 
were a number of interesting things yet to be done. 



338 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

We made posters, balanced up supply books, made out 
reports, and wrote themes on what had been accom- 
plished during the term. Everyone was enthusiastic 
over this work, and it was not until I read the themes 
that I realized how much our project had done for the 
school and how much pleasure had been derived from 
it. The county nurse visited our school both before 
and after the project, and it was found that every pu- 
pil had gained in weight, besides completing a very 
happy and profitable term of school work. 



MISCELLANEOUS 



SEVEN QUALIFICATIONS OF A 
SUCCESSFUL TEACHER 

By Jean L. Gov/dy 

The teacher's importance in the training of the 
child is very great. What are the qualifications of a 
teacher who shall be a success in this work ? I think 
the following are the essential ones. 

The teacher must be a wise lawmaker. The ability 
to make wise laws presupposes an understanding of 
those for whom the laws are made. With this under- 
standing the judicious teacher will make only such 
laws as are absolutely necessary, knowing that liberty 
is one of the essentials of child training. She will try 
to make the children understand why these laws are 
necessary, that they are for the good of all in the 
school and not to please herself or to show her au- 
thority. Her attitude will not be, "Obey me," but 
rather "Obey your better self." She will strive to 
command little and to consult with the children much. 
She will even let them have a part in making the laws, 
if they are old enough to use judgment (and this 
power comes earlier than we sometimes think), by 
questioning them as to which would be better, such or 
such laws, and why. The laws made must show the 
children their relationship to the world. This can be 
done naturally. In short, the teacher should seek to 



340 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

multiply the opportunities for placing the children on 
a thinking basis, and for securing their hearty coopera- 
tion by allowing them to use their own judgment. 
Many teachers fail in training the child because they let 
these precious opportunities to make right impres- 
sions slip by unheeded. 

The teacher must be a just judge. She must always 
take time to be just. She should never feel that she 
must hurriedly place some sort of sentence upon a 
child in order that she may go on with the recitation. 
The recitation can be taken up again to-morrow and 
comparatively little damage be done, but children are 
very quick to detect injustice, and the resentful feel- 
ing aroused by it may never be overcome. 

The teacher must be a prompt executive. She may 
make the wisest of laws, but if she is slack in their en- 
forcement, or if she is strict at one time and easy at 
another, all she may say or do will make but a poor 
impression; in fact, such discipline is decidedly harm- 
ful. Promptness, certainty, and justice in the inflic- 
tion of punishments are the factors which render them 
efficient and make them become unnecessary. The 
best punishments are the retributive ones, as these 
make the children see the absence of the teacher's per- 
sonal feeling in the matter. Such punishments also 
make the children feel that they are brought on by 
themselves, that they are the natural consequence of 
their own acts. 

The teacher must be a leader. She must have a 
forceful, firm honesty that carries weight. Every 
time she speaks she must make an impression. In 
order that this may be done she must not do a great 
deal of talking. The children must feel the power of 
the teacher's personality. The ultimate aim must be 



MISCELLANEOUS 341 

to make herself unnecessary; to develop in the chil- 
dren self-control and independence. 

The teacher must be liberal. She must think of her 
school as a miniature world. All types of people will 
be found there in embryo. They cannot all be trained 
by the same methods, they do not all think alike, 
neither do they perform the same acts at the same age. 
The teacher must recognize these facts and be careful 
to give each child his thinking rights and to respect 
his honest opinions, never seeking to make hers pre- 
dominate. She should present all sides of questions, 
giving the children a chance to form their own judg- 
ments. When disputes arise the teacher should listen 
to each child as he presents his side of the question, 
and then give an unbiased judgment. 

The teacher must be a genial companion and a true 
friend. She should bring her real self into the school- 
room, and that self should be sympathetic, kind, gen- 
erous, patient, courteous, and fun-loving. She should 
always remain young. One of her duties is to make 
the children happy. She must not see in every mis- 
demeanor a direct insult to herself. An offense is al- 
ways better considered as a breach of school discipline 
than as a personal insult. The greatest service one 
person can render another is to believe in him. The 
teacher must always see a great difference between the 
doer of a dishonest act and a dishonest child. In every 
child that comes under her charge she should look for 
that which is good and strong and honorable, and re- 
joice in it. Expect to attain whatever you strive for. 
What we really expect from children we usually get. 
Let us have faith in them. 

Last, but not least, the teacher must be a master 
workman. She should be honest with the children. 



342 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

If a thing is difficult for her to perform, it is well to 
let the children see that she is determined to master it. 
The children recognize and enjoy fresh knowledge, 
and the teacher who comes before her pupils well pre- 
pared to carry on the lesson, losing no time in placing 
it logically before them with freshness and enthusi- 
asm, will have no difficulty in holding their interest 
and attention. At the same time she will be training 
them to appreciate the beauty of a systematic life, 
and when a child appreciates the benefits derived from 
such a life he generally strives to emulate it. 

Emerson says that it matters little what a child 
studies, but that much depends upon Vv^ho his teacher 
is. It is the teacher who by her personality and ex- 
ample molds the characters of her pupils ; who by her 
judicious tact changes curiosity and freshness into 
enthusiasm, originality, and ambition; and who 
through the development of interest, thought, and 
judgment turns the impulses and desires into the right 
channels. 

THE VALUE OF THE PERSONAL TOUCH 
IN THE SCHOOLROOM 

By Lee Hornsby 

Teaching children in the mass has its distinct ad- 
vantages. It is economical for the taxpayer and it 
saves time for the teacher. It is probably the only 
satisfactory method that could be used to give an edu- 
cation to all children. However, it often lacks the 
personal touch which is so essential in the schoolroom. 
The personal touch is that which goes from the teacher 
to the child, and lifts him out of his mental lethargy 
and moral indifference into the realms of stronger am- 



MISCELLANEOUS 343 

bitions and higher aspirations. The personal touch is 
that which arouses the child's courage and pride, and 
spurs him on to do his best, in an effort to merit the 
approval of his teacher and the esteem of his fellow 
pupils. The personal touch is that which inspires, 
rather than teaches. If the child is given the right 
kind of inspiration it is safe to say that he will develop 
the best powers that lie within him. 

The mass system of teaching is apt to give the 
teacher the impression that all children can be and 
should be taught the same things in the same manner. 
Nothing in education could be more erroneous. In 
such a system of teaching, children cease to be per- 
sonalities and simply become so many units of raw 
material to be milled into a finished product. The 
close companionship of teacher and pupil is destroyed 
and the influence of strong and lasting friendship is 
lost to the pupil. The normal pupil longs for the 
friendship of his teacher or of someone whom he rec- 
ognizes as stronger and wiser than himself. 

Many children cannot be taught successfully in the 
mass and the teacher must resort to special methods 
and devices for such children. Some children, like 
some adults, are individualistic in their thinking and 
they cannot be herded with the rest of the class. The 
fact that a child is failing is not a sure indication that 
he is either deficient or lazy. Many times the laggard 
has the best mind in the class, and he fails because the 
teaching is beneath his capacity rather than above it. 
Any system of class teaching which does not take the 
individual pupil into account is not worthy to be called 
teaching. We, as teachers, are prone to pass judg- 
ment on children and to excuse our own poor methods 
of teaching and our inability to get results from some 



344 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

members of the class, because we lack that essential — 
the personal touch. 

If a pupil is failing in geography it is better to try 
a new method with him than to pronounce him defi- 
cient or lazy. If he is given some important project to 
work out for the class on his own initiative he may 
develop undreamed-of capabilities. For example, if 
the class is at work on the geography of the United 
States the child under consideration may be given a 
project on the corn crop of the United States. This 
project he can work out completely. He can compare 
our com crop with that of the whole world. He can 
treat the selection and care of the seed, the planting, 
cultivation, and harvesting, the use of com as feed and 
as a raw product in various manufacturing establish- 
ments, its relation to the dairy industry and the pork 
industry, and the history of the com plant. A similar 
plan can be used for any other product or for any 
other phase of geography. The child should not be ex- 
pected to give all of this matter in one lesson. 

This method makes the individual child stand out 
by himself. It distinguishes him from other members 
of the class, and the matter of distinction is a wonder- 
ful stimulator. It inspires the failing child with new 
courage, with confidence in himself, and with a desire 
to succeed. It develops energy, persistency, self- 
respect, and pride in the power of accomplishment. 

Edison, John Burroughs, and other distinguished 
men made themselves famous because they stole away 
from the crowd long enough to take time to think, to 
put their thinking into concrete form, and to develop 
their individual powers. 

In one county in my state the county superintend- 
ent and the teachers have been trying to give some- 



MISCELLANEOUS 345 

thing of the personal touch to the children of the rural 
schools who are failing in their work. The plan fol- 
lowed is a very simple one. The teacher first makes 
an effort to determine the cause of the child's failure. 
This is done by having a heart-to-heart talk with the 
child. He is shown in a kindly manner where he is 
failing. All scolding and complaining are eliminated. 
By careful questioning the teacher learns the child's 
attitude toward school and toward the subjects in 
which he is failing. She also learns something about 
his home. The teacher is now prepared to help the 
child in his personal difficulties. She is also in a posi- 
tion to consult the parents intelligently and to get 
their cooperation. 

The county nurse is called upon if it appears that 
she is needed. The failure of the child is reported to 
the county superintendent who writes a personal let- 
ter to the child. This letter contains nothing of the 
nature of reproof or of threatening. The child is not 
told that unless he works harder he will fail. Nothing 
is done to arouse his antagonism but everything is 
done to gain his respect and his confidence. 

In this manner the county superintendent, the teach- 
er, the county nurse, and the parents cooperate to the 
fullest extent to impart to the child the personal touch. 
All of this is done without exposing the plan to the 
child. In many cases the child who has appeared to be 
dull proves to have more than average ability to do 
good work. 

The same method in less degree is used with the un- 
usually bright child. Very often he is one of the heav- 
iest responsibilities that the teacher has. The average 
pupil will take care of himself. He is much the same 
day after day. The brilliant pupil does his work so 



346 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

easily that school fails to impress him seriously and he 
soon arrives at the conclusion that life's responsibil- 
ities are all light and frivolous. He soon wastes his 
time and drifts easily into idleness and loses interest 
through sheer inactivity of mind and body. 

The personal touch administered by parents and 
teachers will help to bring such children into a life of 
service, and they will become an asset instead of a 
liability to society. 

A SENSE OF HUMOR 

By Harold Barnes 

Give a newspaper to a real boy and what is the first 
thing he will look for ? If the sporting season is on he 
looks for the sporting page. Having digested that he 
turns immediately to the comic section. What does he 
care about news! Sports and humor are his news. 
How many teachers are there who can talk sports with 
the boys or laugh with them at the antics of familiar 
cartoon figures? Low humor is it? Why not take it 
as you find it and, if you like, gradually put it through 
a refining process by dint of suggestion and illus- 
tration ! 

A teacher without a sense of humor is like a sky 
without sunshine. Just as it takes sunshine to make 
things grow, so it takes a sense of humor with its con- 
comitant sympathy to open up the soul of the child and 
make it grow. Heat expands and cold contracts. The 
schoolroom is the last place in the world for a grouch. 
Some teachers pride themselves upon their effective 
use of sarcasm. The word sarcasm comes from a 
Greek compound which means "to tear flesh like dogs, 
to speak bitterly." It is true to its derivation. One 



MISCELLANEOUS 347 

might just as well try to revive a thirsty plant by pour- 
ing a copious quantity of ice M^ater on it as to try to get 
the right reaction from the child by the use of sarcasm. 
Either process shuts up the cells of growth and chills 
and shrivels. Fear is not educative. 

I found a boy at my office door one day — a boy who 
had been sent there a number of times before by a 
young man teacher who did not understand boys. 
"Well," I said, "what are you here for this time?" 
Drawing down the corners of his mouth and speaking 
in a very much offended tone, he said, referring to his 
teacher, "He ain't got no sense of humor !" And, not- 
withstanding the boy's ungrammatical expression he 
was right. The man was one of those prosaic souls 
who had no appreciation of the humor of a healthy boy. 

It is as natural for a normal child to see the funny 
side of life as it is to breathe. The possession of a 
sense of humor on the part of the teacher does not im- 
ply that she shall let the child run riot in his quest of 
fun, but it does mean that the teacher has the ability 
to understand and sympathize with the child from the 
standpoint of the child. 

If a teacher lacks a sense of humor she should either 
strive faithfully to attain it or she should change her 
vocation and take up v/ork that will relieve her from a 
contact with children. A smile in the schoolroom 
works wonders; a continuous scowl is like a frost in 
warm weather. 

I knew a teacher who almost never smiled in the 
presence of her pupils. She was a driver, not a leader. 
The order in her room was atrocious, and there was a 
continuous trail of pupils to the principal's office for 
punishment. She was finally urged to seek some ether 
employment. 



348 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

It pays to cultivate one's sense of humor. A smile 
warms one's inmost feelings and thaws out the reserve 
and timidity of the child. It stamps an individual as 
really human. And one must remember to laugh with 
and not at his pupils. Enjoy the humorous side of life 
with them. 



THE OIL OF COURTESY 

By Harriette Wilbur 

Lessons in courtesy may quite properly form part of 
the language period, the opening exercises, or the 
games. I instituted such lessons in a certain school 
where I taught the first-grade children, consisting of 
about twenty nationalities, — Finns and Jews predomi- 
nating. Women from uptown who came "slumming'* 
were often very enthusiastic over the children's man- 
ners, evidently expecting hoodlums and hoodlum ways. 
More than one asked the secret, and said that they 
found more courtesy among these foreign children 
than in most of the uptown schools. 

One visitor said that the expression, "Pardon me, I 
didn't hear you," was not commonly used in the other 
schools in town, even in the higher grades. The pupils 
preferred the more laconic "Huh?" or "What?" to in- 
dicate that the speaker had not been heard. "How do 
you secure this result?" she asked me. 

"I began giving drills in politeness. You noticed 
how nicely Jakey lifted his hat when we appeared in 
the doorway just now? He was my first initiate. I 
had him get his hat and play he met me in the street ; 
then I pretended to be the principal ; another teacher 
in the building ; a woman he knew ; a visitor at school ; 
and, finally, a strange woman who dropped something 



MISCELLANEOUS 349 

that he picked up for her. Now I pride myself that 
both the girls and the boys, young as they are, will 
know how to conduct themselves in such emergencies. 

"You perhaps noticed that when I asked Hilme how 
her sister is this morning, she replied 'Much better, 
thank you*? I told the children that was a very good 
answer for such a question, and they seldom fail to 
thank me for inquiring about the health of an invalid 
at home. In order to keep them from becoming too 
parrot-like, I encourage the children to think up new 
ways of answering such questions. Some of them 
bring out very quaint new expressions that are satis- 
factory." 

"The children certainly do treat each other, and 
you, and visitors with courtesy," remarked another 
visitor. "I was amused when there was a rap at the 
door and little Elsie left her place at the blackboard to 
open the door. It was a boy from another room, but 
she said to him, *Come in, please,' in the same way that 
she invited me in. The nice way that Joey placed a 
chair for me was indeed a pleasure to see. Oh, I am 
very enthusiastic about these children." 

Naturally, I was delighted, not just because my 
ways had met with approval, but because the nice little 
courtesies that the children performed so graciously 
put them in such a good light. Moreover, courtesy 
lessons have an added value in creating self-respect 
among the children ; and when one awakens these es- 
timable qualities a long step has been taken in solving 
the government problem of society. 

In short, the oil of courtesy is a good lubricant 
wherever there is friction, and so has a use in the pub- 
lic schools. I do not mean that lessons in courtesy and 
courteous expressions need become a part of the 



350 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

course of study, but that they should be given at odd 
times for the general good of all. 

I have heard a child say to a schoolmate : "Oh, I did- 
n't mean to step on your toe, Gertie" ; or, "Pardon me 
for bumping into you." At such times I have felt 
thankful that some previous lesson in manners had 
forestalled a disturbance in the room or after school. 

In order to make visitors feel welcome, I appoint 
monitors by the week. One will be monitor of the 
chair ; and, in case company comes or I want my chair 
moved from one part of the room to another, it is the 
duty of this monitor to take it in charge. Another 
child will be monitor of the door, whose duty it is to 
answer raps ; to invite visitors in ; to inquire of pupils 
from other rooms what is wanted; to bring me notes 
if the caller is a child, and so on. If the one calling at 
the door be a parent or another child wanting a pupil, 
the monitor goes to the child wanted and whispers to 
him to go out. Each class also has a book monitor, 
whose duty it is to see that the visitor is offered a 
book, opened at the correct page. It is astonishing 
how little things like this make for discipline, self- 
regard, and a wholesome attitude toward the world 
in general. 

RELATING ALL SCHOOL SUBJECTS TO 
THE NEEDS OF THE FOREIGN CHILD 

By- C. Claire Shaver 

There come to the United States every year thou- 
sands of foreigners with their children. These children 
think foreign thoughts, have foreign habits, and speak 
a foreign language. In fact, they are as much foreign 
as though they were still in Europe. 



MISCELLANEOUS 351 

When they are six years of age American laws re- 
quire public school attendance, and the parents are 
forced, often reluctantly, to send their children to 
school. This means a complete change in life for the 
child, introducing new thoughts, new habits, and a new 
language. 

In a certain number of years these children will be 
American citizens. The kind of Americans they will 
become depends entirely upon the teachers the children 
have in the public schools. 

The kind of a teacher we need for foreign children is 
the best that America can produce, because we want 
the best American citizens. The children who come 
from the average American home do not need to be 
taught patriotism, the English language, the funda- 
mentals of American history, and regard for American 
freedom to the extent that foreign children do. 

Foreign children meet America in their school — 
their teacher is America to them. Therefore, their 
teacher should be one who is interested in her work 
and who teaches with a whole-souled, prayerful am- 
bition. 

Given a teacher with all of these qualities how shall 
Americanism be taught with the required school cur- 
riculum? 

Without claiming the qualities, let me tell you my 
plan. I am the teacher of fifty little foreigners of ten 
or twelve nationalities. I will take you through the 
curriculum with my fourth and fifth grades. 

By means of the songs in our opening exercises the 
children unconsciously learn a deep, true sense of 
patriotism. Their favorite songs are the American 
folklore songs, such as, "Old Black Joe," "Dixie," and 
"Swanee River," and our patriotic songs, "America," 



352 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

"The Star-Spangled Banner," and so on. These songs 
are followed by the pledge of allegiance to the flag. 

Geography and history are the two subjects that 
lead most naturally to the teaching of Americanism. 
The first should be purely United States geography un- 
til at least the sixth grade. Perhaps you will contra- 
dict this statement. But do you not think that it is bet- 
ter for these children to have a thorough foundation in 
United States geography, to understand the physical 
construction of the United States, the location of the 
different states and cities, and its commercial problems 
and relation to other countries (for this is really for- 
eign geography to them) than it is for them to have a 
smattering of European geography ? 

United States geography can be vitalized by pictures, 
which you can get at almost any public library, by 
short talks, and by the use of rocks, fossils, and so 
forth. During a lesson on the southern states I 
brought to school a specimen of picked cotton and its 
products ; also pictures of gins and the manufacturing 
of cotton secured from the library. During the study 
of the southwestern states I showed the children a cac- 
tus leaf which gave them an idea of the cactus plant. 

American history is a revelation to the foreign child. 
The Indian, since they have never seen one and never 
heard of him at home, is a very abstract subject. In- 
troducing this I received such questions as : "What do 
Indians look like?" "Are they people like us?" "Are 
they all dead?" "What became of them?" I enlight- 
ened the children by reading several Indian stories and 
having them read an Indian story from their readers. 
I correlated the geography here by telling the location 
of the different tribes and that their names have been 
given to some of our rivers, cities, and states. 



MISCELLANEOUS 353 

In discusing the colonization of the United States I 
found that the children could not understand it, so I 
asked them why their fathers came to this country. I 
received such answers as : "To make money." "To get 
work.'* "To see America." A few said that their 
fathers thought they would have a better chance in this 
country. Then I was able to show them why the first 
colonists came over. 

The Revolution and Civil War were terrible prob- 
lems for the children. Why ? Because their grandsires 
had not fought in them and these children had not 
heard, as American children have, of the winter at 
Valley Forge or Sherman's march to the sea. I ex- 
plained the wars by short stories which I read or told 
to the children. Holidays offered an occasion to corre- 
late our drawing. We made hatchets, three-cornered 
hats, log cabins and, when we studied Western emigra- 
tion, we drew covered wagons. The stories of frontier 
life were hailed with delight. 

As I had fifty dirty, ragged little children from un- 
hygienic homes, the health problem was a very impor- 
tant one. It is one thing to have a child study health 
rules from a book, and quite another to have him apply 
them in his life. So we planned a "Clean-Up Week." 
This required clean faces and hands, hair combed, 
teeth brushed, at least one bath a week, a clean floor in 
the schoolroom, and a neat desk. On the first occasion 
of breaking this rule the name was placed on the black- 
board under the caption, "Untidy People." Even to 
these children this seemed a great disgrace. Each day 
I placed a memory gem on the blackboard, such as : 
"Clean bodies make clean minds," 
"Fresh air at night makes children bright." 
"Children should play in the fresh air each day." 



354 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

These we learned. They were followed by a talk in 
which I explained the cause and effect of each slogan. 

At the end of the first week every child was pre- 
sented with a cake of soap. We continued the cam- 
paign a second week, at the end of which time we gave 
to each child a tube of tooth paste. These small favors 
helped to change an abstract subject to one of interest 
and value. Does hygiene Americanize? Yes. With- 
out clean bodies we could not have clean-minded Amer- 
ican citizens. 

Arithmetic provides many opportunities for Ameri- 
canization as it deals with American money, products, 
and problems. 

There is but one way to teach English to the foreign- 
er. He must have a foundation of phonics. Without 
an oral conception of the English word he cannot grasp 
the written. Only American stories with common 
words should be used for the foreigner in the lower 
grades. After the idea of English words is gained the 
rules of grammar seem easy, and we are able to cover 
them rapidly and thoroughly. 

The problem of the foreign child is a difficult one and 
it requires diligent work. But the result is greater 
than in any other field. It is true patriotic service to 
teach them. 

HOW I TEACH ORAL ENGLISH TO 
FOREIGN CHILDREN 

By Nellie Collins 

For the past seven years I have been teaching oral 
English to non-English speaking children. I have had 
pupils from Spain, Austria, Russia, Italy, some of the 
smaller countries of Central Europe, Mexico, and 



MISCELLANEOUS 355 

China. They have ranged in age from six to fourteen, 
inclusive. 

Having had no previous experience in teaching 
foreigners, and being unable to get much help for this 
special vi^ork from books, as most books deal with 
teaching the adult foreigner, I have been forced to 
work out my own methods and devices to a large ex- 
tent. In the hope that I may help some other perplexed 
teacher to work out a similiar problem, I am writing 
this article. 

I find that a very generous supply of objects and pic- 
tures is absolutely necessary to prevent a narrow con- 
ception of the words and sentences taught. I secure 
my pictures from the covers and advertising pages of 
magazines. These I cut out and mount on stiff paper. 
I have a three-foot board above my blackboard all 
around my room. On this I fasten my pictures with 
thumb tacks, as they are needed. I collect my objects 
from every source, often borrowing from my friends. 
Sometimes I buy simple toys. I train the children to 
handle the toys, pictures, and other objects with care, 
and to talk about them freely. I also encourage the 
pupils to bring things from home to illustrate the work. 
I put them up for at least a few minutes where all can 
see and enjoy them. As soon as the children have 
learned enough English I have them make sentences 
about the various objects. 

I find that physical activity on the part of the child, 
in connection with action words and sentences, is es- 
sential to this work. I teach English names for famil- 
iar objects, such as, chair, window, door, and table. 
My first sentences are something like the following : / 
run. I run to a window. I open the window. I sit on 
a chair. I shut the door. I eat an apple. In every 



356 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

case the child performs the action as he gives the sen- 
tence. At first he can only repeat after me, but soon 
he learns to give the sentence independently. Later 
we dramatize our stories, going over them again and 
again. The stick is actually burned by the fire, the fire 
quenched by the v^ater, and so on. An unfailing source 
of joy is to let the children give a real party, when that 
word is taught, having games and refreshments and in- 
viting the grade just higher as guests. Then, too, a 
genuine picnic is never forgotten. I take every class to 
a bakery and let them buy a gingerbread boy, when 
that story is told. Thus buy is forever afterward a 
part of the vocabulary of the class, and is used in all 
future games of buying and selling. 

The first work must of necessity consist of words, 
phrases, and sentences repeated individually after the 
teacher, but I try to get independent expression just 
as soon as possible. I always praise each attempt, even 
though the result be faulty. I try to put myself in the 
child's place. If I should attempt to express myself in 
Russian or Chinese, I am sure my language would be 
far from perfect. 

I find that a calendar for each school month is a 
great help. The children decorate it and write the date 
for each day. For decorations we often use a yellow 
circle to represent sunshine, a blue surface for the sky, 
and white or gray to represent clouds. The teacher 
may choose a different symbolism, but her object 
should be to train her pupils to observe natural phe- 
nomena, and to talk about them freely. From the cal- 
endars I teach the names of the seasons and months, 
and the characteristics of each ; also the names of the 
days of the week, and interesting facts about the special 
days that we celebrate. 



MISCELLANEOUS 357 

English idoms and irregular verbs are difficult to 
master, and require frequent repetition. I give many 
games to this end. I also have frequent matches on 
such words as he, she, his, her; see, saw, seen; do, did, 
done, having pupils use them in sentences. Any good 
book of language games will give suggestions that one 
may use in this work. I always adapt my games to the 
needs of the class, and I try to vary them often enough 
to keep up lively interest and enthusiasm. The chil- 
dren enjoy these games very much. 

I have the class salute the flag and sing "America" 
every morning. At first they are only able to go 
through the motions of saluting the flag and to sing la 
to the air of "America," but gradually they learn the 
words. I teach many simple flag songs, in an effort to 
instill a love for our "Red, White, and Blue." 

I give thorough drills in phonics, teaching the conso- 
nants and short vowels first, then the long vowels. As 
the children do not know English I cannot use stories 
in teaching these word sounds, so I simply show a let- 
ter (printed) and give its sound. I drill on these 
sounds just as I do on words. I have each child make 
a phonic booklet in order to fix the sounds in his mind, 
also to give him a reference to which he may go. In 
this booklet he pastes under A and a pictures of objects 
beginning with that sound. Each page is devoted to 
one sound. I also have much word-building. A small 
printing outfit can be used to great advantage, first by 
the teacher, later by the pupils. 

Though I use all these various materials and devices, 
"and have not love, it profiteth me nothing." A gen- 
uine affection for my little foreigners and a sincere 
desire to help them to be happy, loyal Americans must 
be the foundation upon which I build. 



358 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

THE MOST SUCCESSFUL STORY 
I EVER TOLD 

By Gertrude A. Zerr 

It happened to be "Ben Hur." I told it because my 
sixth grade was studying Roman history and not en- 
joying it at all ; and I consider it the most successful 
story I ever told because I learned a great deal from 
it. 

My pupils ranged in age from five to eleven, but I 
told the lower classes they need not listen if they did 
not wish to. My story-telling periods were of one-half 
hour's duration. When I had reached the third sec- 
tion of the story, a little boy fractured his leg and had 
to be out of school. He cried because he said that he 
would never know what became of the family of Hur 
after the catastrophe. So I went to his home twice a 
week to tell him the portions of the story I had related 
in school. And the family always hurried through the 
evening chores so they could sit and listen, too. Even 
the baby, two and one-half years old, caught the solem- 
nity of the occasion and for days after would repeat 
phrases that caught her fancy, such as, "eyes o' b'ue an' 
hair o' dold." 

I learned that the appeal of the classics is not a 
scholastic appeal ; and I went right on through the rest 
of the year, reading all of the unread books the library 
held. They were thick books with fine print and no 
pictures. 

One day when I told a trifling tale about small boys 
and dogs, one of the seven-year-old boys informed me 
that it was all right but he liked "real stories" better. 

To tell the story of a book requires a little different 
technique, I think, than to tell a short story. It must 



MISCELLANEOUS 359 

be told in sections. What is dramatic to the adult 
may not be dramatic to the child. Therefore, it re- 
quires a little thought in the preparation. I read about 
twenty pages the night before, stopping "when I come to 
what I consider a dramatic point and endeavoring to 
end always with a question, whether the author does 
or not. I open the next story-telling period with the 
question with which the former section closed, and let 
that question give rise to another. 

If there are military maneuvers to be executed, or 
trails in dense jungles to penetrate, or castles to be be- 
sieged, I make sure I understand them myself, and I 
draw diagrams on the board, and pictures of the com- 
bat. I cannot draw, but that makes little difference. 
I say my drawing represents a castle, and nobody ques- 
tions the fact. 

I do not hesitate to take liberties with the author's 
presentation, though I stick closely to the plot and 
make much of the atmosphere. I never prepare any 
more of the story the night before than I am going to 
tell ; it gives me a definite unit, and if I read ahead, I 
am apt to ramble. Of course, philosophizing, and court- 
ship, and sectarian prejudice, and anything unsuited to 
the emotional development of children is omitted; if 
any of it is necessary to the plot, it takes only a little in- 
genuity to substitute something else. 

I have found that the classics (and a few stories 
which are not technically classic) make a greater im- 
pression, geographically and historically, than the 
short stories and children's descriptive travel books, in 
which courses of study place so much confidence. 

I read in the summer time because, even if I do not 
teach the same children every year, I enjoy telling 
stories new to myself. Since I spend my winters in the 



360 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

remote mountains I like to be in town in the summer. 
In the cool libraries I read, with the help of the libra- 
rian, the literature of the ages or of the world's geog- 
raphy. 

"Give me a Russian classic," I say. And if the first 
one is not suitable for telling, I ask for another one, un- 
til I find one that is at the same time dramatic and 
characteristic. It does not matter for geographical 
purposes what time is described. The point is that I 
cover the whole earth every year, geographically and 
historically ; and eveiybody loves it ! 

We have a very good library law in our state, and 
the teacher in the rural school is always allowed to se- 
lect the year's books every September, so I have no 
difficulty in getting the books I want. There is some- 
times a question from the county superintendent as to 
the reason for such advanced reading, but the explana- 
tion is always satisfactory. 

Of course, reading for the purpose of telling makes 
a great deal of extra work, but when you love to read 
anyway (otherwise, how can you inculcate a love of 
reading?) isn't it just as well to read for a purpose? 
And reading around the world is a charming way for 
an adult to read. 

I refuse to tell a story more than once. "When you 
are older, you can read it for yourself," I say. So the 
book goes home to a patient mother and father to be 
read again, and told ; or the thick, uninteresting, unil- 
lustrated volume in which the treasure is buried is 
brought to me, and I am asked to point out the place 
where Ben Hur won the race, or where the Indians 
fought the white men under the waterfall, or where 
the eruption of the volcano saved the doomed Glaucus, 
and thus a chapter or two is read in a book that would 



MISCELLANEOUS 361 

otherwise have been forever only a piece of the fur- 
nishing of the bookcase. 

I thoroughly enjoy this form of story-telling. My 
own education progresses and, best of all, my pupils 
find out what books are for. 



WRITING THEIR OWN PLAY 

By Edna L MacKen2ae 

I have the children in ray fifth grade write their own 
plays instead of using the made-to-order dramatized 
story. This develops in them imagination and real 
creative ability, while their enjoyment in acting some- 
thing they themselves have written makes up for any 
crudeness in the material. 

"Damon and Pythias" was the first story we at- 
tempted to make into a play. We read it carefully, and 
I had it retold several times until all the children were 
perfectly familiar with the plot. Then I suggested 
that we make it into a play. Before attempting to do 
this, however, I explained the most simple of the tech- 
nical terms of a play, such as, dialogue, scenes, char- 
acters, and exit; also the use of brackets in denoting 
action, giving directions, and so forth. 

As a practical illustration I had the pupils take out a 
book and study. Then when I asked a question I had a 
girl rise and ask if she might go to the library for a 
book. Permission was granted and she went out. 
Then I wrote the following on the blackboard : 

Mary's Request 
Characters 
Miss Merton — The teacher 
Mary Ross — A pupil 



362 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Scene 1. — ^The classroom. 
(Curtain rises, revealing the pupils in their 
seats quietly studying. Teacher is at desk, 
correcting papers.) 

Teacher (Looks up) — Has anyone a ques- 
tion to ask on the lesson? (Mary raises her 
hand.) Mary, what don't you understand? 

Mary (Rises) — May I go to the library for 
a book, Miss Merton? 

Teacher (Smiles) — You may, Mary. 

(Exit Mary) 

After one or two more scenes similiar to this, but 
with different action and dialogue, we proceeded to 
write our play. Selecting the characters was the first 
step. I wrote them on the blackboard in order of im- 
portance. Characters not mentioned in the story were 
introduced. For instance, one pupil said there should 
be a spy to report the plot to the king, so we put him in. 
Another child thought that there should be a messen- 
ger to go to Pythias, so he was added ; while still an- 
other pupil suggested a queen to plead for Damon. He 
was told that he could put her in his play. Every ori- 
ginal idea that was at all practical was encouraged. 

Then came the discussion of the scenes. The teacher 
must use her own judgment in separating the wheat 
from the chaff in the answers that are given. We add- 
ed two scenes to those clearly defined in the story ; one 
at Pythias' home where the messenger goes with the 
message, and the other in the prison where the friends 
meet. These scenes are short but are valuable, as they 
put the child entirely on his own initiative in devising 
the dialogue. I began the first scene on the blackboard, 
using the simple language of the child : 



MISCELLANEOUS 363 

Scene 1. — The courtroom in the king's pal- 
ace. 

(Curtain rising, reveals the king seated on 
his throne, with soldiers standing guard. En- 
ter spy.) 

Spy (Bows before king) — Your majesty, 
I have discovered a plot against your life. 

King — Who has dared to plot against me? 

Spy — Your majesty, it is a man by the 
name of Damon. 

King — He shall die. (To soldiers) Go and 
bring the traitor here. (Exit soldiers and 
spy. They reenter with Damon between 
soldiers.) 

King — Why have you, etc. 

Damon (Gets on his knees) — Your maj- 
esty, it is because, etc. 

With this to start them, the children entered into the 
spirit of the play and most of them had no difficulty in 
continuing it. I impressed on them that they should 
see each scene in their minds as they wrote it, and even 
had several close their eyes and tell me what they saw. 

I set a definite time for the play to be finished and 
then had each pupil read his own before the class. The 
children decided on the best scenes by vote. I had 
them vote on each scene separately rather than on the 
play as a whole, as it gave more children the pleasure 
of feeling that they had helped to write the play that 
was really to be acted. One of the pupils was given the 
honor of collecting the scenes chosen and putting the 
play together. 

Then came the acting. We chose for the characters 
pupils with the most dramatic ability. Special tim.e 



364 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

was given them to learn their parts and have a rehear- 
sal. They had to use their own ingenuity in planning 
their stage (the front of the room) and providing nec- 
essary equipment. The originality of the dialogue in 
the play and the cleverness of the actors in overcom- 
ing obstacles in staging and equipment was a revela- 
tion of talent that had hitherto been unsuspected. 

HOW TO GIVE A SUCCESSFUL SCHOOL 
ENTERTAINMENT 

By- Sarah H. Murdock 

The public school entertainment, to be successful 
from a community, social, or financial standpoint, 
must be most carefully planned. Like the short story, 
the program should begin with a striking note, and 
develop to a splendid, surprising climax, at the same 
time introducing lights and shadows: contrasting 
speaking voices with singing voices, solos with mass 
effects, voices with instruments, boys' voices with girls' 
voices, and unison songs with part songs. Above all, 
the program must have some kind of human interest, 
and must arouse the emotions of the audience. It 
must have a strong beginning and end with a flourish. 

Generally speaking, the larger the number of chil- 
dren participating, the greater the appeal to the com- 
munity. Especially valuable for these desired mass ef- 
fects are drills and choruses, if well-grouped and 
staged. Artistically planned exits and entrances and 
the massing of groups in picturesque tableaux or geo- 
metric figures, with pantomimes and simple dances, 
contribute to good staging. A practical working 
knowledge of gestures and simple folk dances, and a 
scrapbook well filled with notes on stage "business" 



MISCELLANEOUS 365 

personally observed, and with clippings and pictures 
of scenes from operas and plays, will greatly aid the 
teacher, not only to plot out tentatively the entire stag- 
ing, but also to guide her in teaching the children to ex- 
press vividly emotions like joy, sadness, patriotism, 
and pleasure in such an objective manner that the 
audience will be emotionally aroused. For, after all, 
the response of the audience to the human interest ap- 
peal, is the true test of the success or failure of the 
program. 

When there is to be difficult part singing and the 
stage is provided with a curtain, it is sometimes well 
to have the curtain drawn so that the children may be 
carefully seated in their respective places beforehand. 
The music, then, might start before the curtain rises or 
the chorus may be "discovered" as the curtain rises. 
At other times, children might be arranged according 
to their respective heights ; tall ones next to tall ones 
and all graduated down to short ones next to short 
ones. Straight lines may be kept straight and curved 
ones may be correctly curved by requiring these chil- 
dren to toe a chalk line on the floor of the stage plat- 
form. 

Where the curtain is not used to mask entrances, 
boys may march in with a fast double quick step, cross 
stage, wheel, march in opposite direction, wheel, come 
to position in a horizontal line, marking time before 
they plunge into a rollicking song with gestures, words 
emphasized by shouts. Girls, however, must avoid 
these smart, humorous songs affected by the boys and 
must adopt quieter songs requiring graceful, curving 
gestures, dance steps, and picturesque group postures. 
"Off-stage" effects give variety to the program. Cer- 
tain groups may sing or play instruments in the dress- 



366 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

ing rooms adjoining the stage; others may approach 
the stage from the rear of the hall, coming through the 
audience. Whistling, comet solos, and mandolins 
massed are especially good if used in this way. 

The staging once planned, the rehearsals begin. 
First of all, tell the children just what emotional re- 
sponse they must try to win from their audience and 
then show them how to do this through facial expres- 
sion and gesture. In drilling your chorus it is well to 
rehearse certain words in the lines as signals for cer- 
tain group gestures and also to train certain special 
leaders to start the group pantomimes. 

After the planning and rehearsals comes the ques- 
tion of costuming, because costumes, though not al- 
ways absolutely necessary, undoubtedly add much to 
the pleasing final effect of the program. These need 
not necessarily be elaborate. A bright-colored cap or 
shoulder band from right shoulder to waist line at 
the left for the boys, a bright crepe-paper ribbon bow 
or sash for the girls may be all that is required. How- 
ever, the white slips over which the girls wear these 
changes of costume should all measure the same dis- 
tance from the floor. The younger boys can don Boy 
Scout uniforms or other khaki suits; the older ones 
may wear dark coats with white duck trousers. 

If more elaborate costumes are desired, one might 
consult her well-filled notebook containing announce- 
ments of fancy dress patterns advertised by fashion 
magazines, pictures of actors and actresses in pictur- 
esque costumes, pictures of historical and mythical per- 
sonages, pictures of foreign peoples, notes of clever 
masquerade and theatrical costumes personally ob- 
served. Many of these more elaborate costumes may 
be copied simply by using crepe paper, silkaline, tarla- 



MISCELLANEOUS 367 

tan, dyed surgical gauze, or cheesecloth. In all cos- 
tuming, however, one should remember not to use deli- 
cate tones like heliotrope which appear faded under 
artificial lights but rather, warm, vivid tones, espe- 
cially if the entertainment is to take place in the 
evening. 

Good decorations with simple, conventional and sub- 
dued effects help the public-school entertainment. 
Glaring colors and too high decorations should be 
avoided for they would lessen the effect of what takes 
place on the platform. For good ideas along this line, 
too, it is well to keep a notebook of pictures and 
clippings. 

When the day for the entertainment arrives, post 
the program behind the scenes where all the children 
may see it. Appoint leaders behind the scenes to be 
responsible for starting the different groups to the 
stage without a second's loss of time. Above all, no 
matter how discouraging the indispensable dress re- 
hearsal may have been, no matter how many last-min- 
ute criticisms you may feel forced to make, it is well to 
avoid all eleventh-hour criticisms or suggestions and 
to pass out only compliments which will conquer the 
children's natural stage-fright and send them on full 
of confidence and anxious to exact an emotional re- 
sponse from the audience. Especially charge the large 
chorus, or the boys who open the program with a 
dramatic or rollicking song, that they are "shock 
troops" responsible for thawing out the audience so 
that those who follow may have a pleasanter time. 
These "shock troops" will be more successful if they 
are not weary from too much last-minute rehearsing. 

Granting that the "shock troops" win the audience, 
the rest of the program is apt to fare well. Enthusi- 



368 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

asm will increase if the program is properly planned 
to secure an increasing emotional response. The big 
number at the end should be so splendid that the well- 
pleased audience will hear its rhythm and remember 
it, at least until the next year when you wish to launch 
a new entertainment. 

CX)NSTRUCTION WORK MOTIVATED BY 
THE FURNISHING OF A ROOM 

By~ Alvina Kirchner 

The problem which we are working out in my third 
grade this year, is the furnishing of a room in a colo- 
nial home. It has been a very interesting problem be- 
cause it correlates so nicely with the study of geog- 
raphy and history. 

The aim of this problem is to secure skill in con- 
struction work and to teach some of the important 
principles of interior decorating. 

The room, which has three side walls and a floor, 
was made of beaver board by the boys of the manual 
training class. It is fifty-six inches long, thirty-two 
inches wide and thirty inches high. 

Real wall paper was used for the walls. Samples 
were brought by the children and after a talk about 
the best kind to be used for the room, one was chosen 
and a sufficient amount brought to school. The paste 
and brushes were furnished by a boy whose father is a 
paper hanger. Several children were chosen to paper 
the room. Some measured and cut the strips, while 
others pasted and put the paper on the walls. 

For a window we used, instead of cutting the box, a 
piece of white paper thirteen by fifteen inches. A nar- 
row strip of brown construction paper, one inch wide. 



MISCELLANEOUS 369 

was pasted around the edge and two one-half inch 
strips were crossed with three strips to make the pa- 
per look like window panes. Small hooks were used to 
hold the curtain rod. Curtains were made of white 
material with a design made with stick-printing. 

The rugs were woven of blue and white carpet rags. 
The pasteboard looms were made of backs of tablets 
or similar pieces of pasteboard. Each child made his 
loom the size he wanted. One large rug was made by 
the children who finished their small rugs first. 

The furniture was made of pasteboard boxes. Each 
child was allowed to make as many pieces of furniture 
as he cared to make or for which he had boxes. Only 
the best pieces and those of the right size were used 
for the room. Dark orange paint was used for the fur- 
niture because it covers all printing on the boxes. Glue 
and brass fasteners were used to fasten the boxes to- 
gether. Shoe boxes were a good size for chairs and 
were the foundation for a number of other pieces of 
furniture. 

The girls pieced blue and white quilts, and the pret- 
tiest and neatest one was used for the cradle. Dishes 
and candlesticks were made and were painted with blue 
and white. 

Throughout the entire project the children worked 
out their own ideas with suggestions from me when 
they were needed. We found good colonial pictures in 
histories and books on colonial life. 

I think the first thing to be done in working out this 
problem is for the teacher to plan the work just as she 
expects it to be done. One can get many ideas and 
much help from various books in regard to color 
schemes, interior decorating, rug weaving, making of 
clay dishes, and construction of furniture. After the 



370 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

teacher has planned the work and knows just what 
must be done, she must get the children interested in 
colonial life through history and the study of different 
types of homes in geography. As soon as the children 
become interested they will begin to furnish the mate- 
rial, such as pasteboard, boxes, carpet rags, wall pa- 
per, and other materials that can be brought from 
home. It is well for glue, brass fasteners, and stick- 
printing to be furnished by the school. 

Other problems which can be worked out in a simi- 
lar manner are the school playground, the nursery, the 
kitchen, the dining room, the living room, the sleeping 
room, the garden, the farm, or the stores in a com- 
munity street. 

I have helped work out the last two problems and 
both were very successful. 

The farm was made on a sand table and included the 
house, barn, silo, chicken house, hog house, windmill, 
com crib, fences, orchard, garden, fields of corn, horses, 
cattle, and machinery; in fact, everything that could 
possibly be made. The material used for this problem 
was construction paper. 

The community street was made on a very long 
table and included dry-goods stores, shoe stores, 
ready-to-wear and millinery shops, butcher shop, 
grocery store, book store, garage, ice cream parlor, 
ten-cent store, and furniture store. For this project 
we used pasteboard boxes, construction paper, model- 
ing clay, bits of cloth, lace and ribbon, tissue paper, 
tinfoil, pictures from magazines and catalogues, and 
many other things that children were glad to bring 
from home. 

These problems are very interesting and also inex- 
pensive. Their educational value is easily recognized. 



MISCELLANEOUS 371 

VITALIZING A RURAL SCHOOL 
THROUGH MANUAL TRAINING 

By" Mildred E. Watrous 

My first experience with manual training was in a 
small country school. The boys in the school were 
nearing the age of adolescence, and they were all in a 
state of unrest bordering upon insubordination. They 
felt no interest in attending school, were of the opin- 
ion that the "stuff" they were forced to learn would be 
of no value to them in adult life, and were, in truth, 
completely out of harmony with school life. 

A teacher friend suggested sloyd work, and, while I 
had only a faint idea of the meaning of the word, I 
grasped eagerly at the suggestion. 

I found my boys were supplied with pocket knives 
and with these, some glue, small brads, a tack ham- 
mer, and some cigar boxes secured from a local supply 
store, we made numerous articles, such as paper 
knives, envelope holders, tie racks, picture frames, 
key racks, and match scratchers. I combined my 
sixth, seventh, and eighth grades in one division for 
this work, giving an hour twice a week to the careful 
supervision of their efforts. During the same period 
the primary grade and intermediate students were do- 
ing such work as weaving, modeling, and illustrative 
paper cutting and construction work. The older girls 
were given lessons in sewing. 

At the close of four months I found that the idea 
was working out well; my boys were showing a de- 
cided interest and looked forward eagerly to the man- 
ual training period. At Christmas time I purchased 
for each member of the class a coping saw, and se- 
cured patterns, shellac, stains, and a small paint 



372 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

brush. We did excellent work with this equipment the 
last four months of the term, as the boys seemed to 
have developed considerable muscular control and con- 
structive ability. 

As a teacher of manual training, however, I felt in- 
competent, and, during the following summer, I took 
a short course in the subject under a very able instruc- 
tor. I explained to him the nature of the work I 
wished to carry on in my school, and he very willingly 
gave special instruction in the use and care of all com- 
mon tools, making of joints, rope work, and the gen- 
eral principles of woodworking, together with many 
practical suggestions. 

I entered my new school with a fair working knowl- 
edge of the subject which had become, by this time, of 
such deep interest as to be a hobby with me. 

The oldest boys in this school were sixth-grade pu- 
pils, with no experience in manual arts of any kind. 
For the year's work I chose a textbook containing sim- 
ple projects, explained in a clear and comprehensive 
style, with careful working drawings, easily followed 
by the beginner, and with all -difficult steps in wood- 
working approached gradually and worked out 
definitely. 

Early in the fall we gave a school entertainment 
which netted us enough to procure an eight-drawer 
manual training bench, a few tools, and the necessary 
lumber for the year's work. We borrowed some tools, 
also, and did some really good work through the year, 
holding an exhibit in the spring to which we invited 
all patrons and the school directors. The articles ex- 
hibited, together with the enthusiasm of the pupils, 
the patrons' evident pride and satisfaction, my at- 
tendance record, and remarks on the general vitalized 



MISCELLANEOUS 373 

condition of the school, led our directors to generously 
offer us a complete equipment of tools. One of them 
remarked that as we had gone a long way on our own 
initiative, he would like to see the outcome of the ex- 
periment. 

After three years the experiment has resulted in 
our having a room built on to the school for a shop, all 
necessary tools and the interest and enthusiasm of all 
patrons and pupils. The projects now attempted are 
more difficult. Such useful furnishings as ironing 
boards, stepladders, milk stools, brooders, porch 
swings, and playground apparatus have been con- 
structed and sold to people in the community. A very 
complete doll house was made which has given the 
lower grades ample motivation for construction work 
along decorative lines. 

No teacher need wait for equipment, or hesitate be- 
cause of being a woman. I have never seen a growing 
boy who was impressed by the teacher's evident knowl- 
edge of conjugations or declensions, but I have seen 
genuine respect and wonder reflected in boyish coun- 
tenances when a woman teacher, with no apparent ef- 
fort, ties divers kinds of knots with rope, or divulges 
the tricks of the trade with hammer, plane and saw. 

The teacher who has worked with boys at bench 
work has doubtless broken through their boyish re- 
serve more completely than would be possible in any 
other line of study. Manual arts vitalizes the school in 
a degree only exceeded by athletic exercises, and will 
hold the boys at an age when a great percentage of 
them drop out for sheer lack of a subject which has a 
meaning for them. "The only true way to learn a 
thing is to live it" and adolescence is the golden period 
for acquiring the skill that comes by practice. 



374 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

A NOVEL WAY TO CREATE AN INTER- 
EST IN SEWING 

By Genevieve Bischman 

Last fall our county superintendent asked the teach- 
ers in the rural schools to organize sewing classes 
which should meet for a half-hour once each week. 
We were to teach the girls to mend their own clothes 
and make a few of the simplest garments. 

One day I asked some of my girls if they could sew, 
or mend their own clothes, or if any of them cared to 
learn to do either. The reply to all three questions 
was **No." One girl said that her mother had taught 
her to darn her stockings, but that she didn't like to 
do it. 

I said no more about sewing to the girls, but I began 
to work out my program. All girls like pretty clothes, 
so I wore some of my prettiest dresses, blouses and 
skirts to school. Not many days passed before one 
girl after another remarked to me, or to the other 
children about my pretty dress or blouse. I was not 
"showing off" my clothes but merely creating a desire 
for and an interest in sewing. To all the remarks I 
simply said, "I made this dress. Wouldn't you like to 
make a dress for yourself?" Many times I received 
this reply, "Yes, I would, but I know I never could." 
I always told them that sometime they could if they 
began on easy things first. 

I often wore clothes that I had neatly darned or 
patched. Most children sometimes wear mended 
clothes to school, and one day one of the girls laugh- 
ingly said to me: "Don't you like my dress. Miss B — ? 
See the patch on the side. I caught it on the fence 
and tore it, and Mother had to patch it in a hurry." 



MISCELLANEOUS 375 

"Why, Helen," I replied, "see how nice it would be 
if you could mend your own clothes. You would have 
saved your mother all those stitches, and you would 
have been able to show the girls how well you could 
mend." 

I brought odd bits of sewing to school, and sewed 
for a few minutes at noon or recess. You see this 
was part of my scheme, therefore I was not wasting 
time nor spending it on anything other than school 
work. Whenever I sewed, some of the girls would 
come to my desk to watch and question me. 

One noon while I was sewing, an industrious sev- 
enth-grade girl, the one who said she could darn but 
didn't like to, came to me and said: "See, Miss B — , I 
darned my stocking this morning before I came to 
school." 

"Isn't that just fine, Edna?" I repHed. "How nicely 
you have done it ! I wonder if any of the other girls 
mend their clothes?" 

"We don't know how," was the answer. 

Ruth, the only sixth grader I have, smiled, and her 
eyes brightened, as she asked me, "When do our sew- 
ing classes begin. Miss B — ?" 

I, too, smiled, and I'm sure my eyes must have 
brightened, as I replied : "To-morrow each one of you 
may bring one of your own stockings, and I shall 
bring one of mine. You may also bring your own 
darning needle, and darning cotton, and at half-past 
three to-morrow afternoon we'll start our first sew- 
ing class." 

How glad I was! I had won the day! I had at 
least created a desire! 

Our first lesson was successful, as all the lessons 
have been. The girls now dam their stockings, patch 



376 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

their clothes, and sew on their buttons. If they hap- 
pen to wear the mended articles to school they show 
them to me, and I make suggestions about their mend- 
ing, as they seem anxious to do their best. I grade the 
mending that each girl does, placing the mark on her 
report card. 

I always keep needles and black and white thread at 
school so that whenever a child tears her clothes she 
may mend them. This, too, has helped to create an in- 
dustrious spirit and has secured the cooperation and 
admiration of the mothers. 

The chief thing in teaching sewing, as in everything 
else, is to create a desire and an interest. One must 
also have patience, as it is extremely hard for some 
girls to sew. 

HO\A^ I MADE MY SECOND-GRADE CHIL- 
DREN WANT MORE EDUCATION 

By~ Frances C. Duggar 

I had not been teaching the second grade long before 
I began to wonder if all the time I had spent in colleges 
and universities had been wasted, and that in my 
chosen profession I could make use of none of the fas- 
cinating material of which my education so largely 
consisted. 

No, surely whatever training I possessed must have 
some value to the little minds entrusted to my care. 
Why not use a little of it then? After thinking for 
some time, the idea of a surprise period developed in 
my mind. I would have a certain time every day in 
which I would talk to the children of the wonders of the 
earth around them. I would show them things they 
had never seen before. I would make them want to 



MISCELLANEOUS 377 

learn more of the great world in which they lived 
and of the many interesting and strange processes that 
go on in it daily. If possible, I would fire them with 
such a desire for knowledge, that they would want to 
go to high school, to college. I would place before them 
an objective toward which they must strive. They 
must look on the second grade work as a step in the 
great ladder which leads to knowledge — knowledge of 
all the things which they most want to know. 

But when could such a period be introduced? The 
curriculum was already crowded. Then another happy 
thought came to me. Why not arrange this period 
before school hours? In other words why not utilize 
the time between the ringing of the first bell and the 
ringing of the tardy bell, fifteen minutes later? And 
if I made those minutes interesting enough, another 
great objective would be accomplished. The children 
would not want to miss the period and there would be 
no more unnecessary tardiness. 

And so the plan was put into operation. All that I 
do in this period could be done by any teacher with a 
high school training and the use of a few good text- 
books. This period in no way replaced or detracted 
from the regular nature-study period given during 
school hours. In fact it made the children so alert that 
even familiar animals and flowers are studied more 
intelligently. 

So strange and so fascinating did the children find 
this period that they began by calling it the "Trick 
Period." I changed its name to "Surprise Period," 
explaining to the children that the curious things they 
saw were perfectly natural if correctly understood. 

The surprises that I introduced were of three 
classes: (1) chemical, (2) biological, and (3) physical. 



378 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

For the first few weeks I used the latter class almost 
exclusively. This was because the experiments in phys- 
ics required so little apparatus and so little expense. 
In the meantime I ordered what I wanted for the rest 
of the work. And after I had all my material at hand, 
I alternated the experiments, performing one in chem- 
istry on the first day, one in physics on the second, one 
in biologj" on the third, and so forth. 

For biology, I made out a list of strange and un- 
usual animals in which I thought the children would be 
particularly interested and which would enlarge their 
vision of the scope of animal life. This list included 
jellyfish, starfish, sea urchins, various kinds of coral, 
sponges of several types, including the beautiful Venus 
Flower Basket and Glass Rope varieties, sea worms, 
and many other specimens. I sent my list to a biologi- 
cal laboratory, asking for a price on it, one specimen 
of each kmd selected, put up in separate bottles of al- 
cohol or other preservative. The price was satisfac- 
tory, and I ordered the collection. 

Each specimen constituted the surprise for a sepa- 
rate day. Suppose the specimen were a jellyfish. The 
jar was passed from child to child while I drew the 
animal on the blackboard, pointed out its principal 
features and told the children the story of its life, — 
how it ate, how it swam, how it defended itself, and so 
on. To the children it was as interesting as a fairy 
story. Last of all I impressed upon them that more, 
much more, could be learned of the jellyfish, of its life, 
and of the life of other animals in the sea when they 
had learned to read and study and think for them- 
selves. When they went to high school they would be 
old enough to learn many things that they were now 
too small to understand perfectly. The response was 



MISCELLANEOUS 379 

unanimous. They would keep on going to school until 
they reached high school. And then if they went to col- 
lege they would learn things even more wonderful. 
They would all go to college too. Every child was quite 
sure of that. 

The coral specimens were the starting point for 
many strange stories about the little coral animals and 
how they built the wonderful coral reefs far out in the 
ocean. We learned about red coral and white coral, 
and how coral necklaces are made. 

The starfish also was very wonderful to the children. 
They located its mouth, its spines, its tube feet, and 
learned their uses. How the brittle stars could throw 
off a leg and grow another was wonderful to them be- 
yond words. And I never failed, not one single time, 
to let the children know that there was more, far more 
which they would like to learn some day. 

Botany too was a rich field for experiment. A white 
star printed on a living leaf by cutting off the sunlight 
with a cardboard star was the starting point for intro- 
ducing the whole mysterious story of the leaves, the 
light, and the chlorophyll. And how the children did 
enjoy a big word now and then! Chlorophyll — the 
green dye in a leaf — they understood it perfectly ! And 
microscopes ! How many things they magnified ! How 
big the children's eyes grew when I told them of the 
high power microscopes which magnified hundreds of 
times, making a tiny dot look very large. This was 
very wonderful to them. 

The physical experiments were very simple ; but how 
much they taught the children ! I am listing below a 
few of the favorites : 

Siphon. 

Pulleys. 



380 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

Batteries and electrical shocks. 

Cartesian Diver (nothing required but a tiny bottle, 
a large bottle and some water) . A great favorite 
with the children. 

Water pressure illustrated by pouring sand into 
lamp chimney stopped with cardboard under water. 

Fusion of ice, illustrated with a wire, a piece of ice, 
and two weights. 

Magnets. 

Soap films over wire frames and thread loops. 

Making water boil by pouring cold water over flask 
containing hot water at reduced pressure (nothing 
required but water, heat, and a corked flask.) 
There are hundreds of such experiments, illustrating 
every law of natural life. Teachers can find full di- 
rections for performing them in any good physics text- 
book. 

Chemistry to me is the most fascinating of all 
sciences. I ordered a few dollars worth of chemicals, 
and they furnished untold bliss to the eager little 
learners. Filtering, distilling water, making and test- 
ing for oxygen teach valuable lessons, such as the puri- 
fication of our drinking water, the function of oxygen 
in the body, and the importance of fresh air. 

The color surprises delighted the children. Two 
clear liquids poured together, and lo — a pink liquid! 
Another clear liquid poured in, and lo — a clear liquid 
again! Phenolphthalein, an alkali, and an acid per- 
formed the miracle. 

Can you imagine a child being tardy when he misses 
all this ? Can you imagine a boy or girl with this start 
who will not intensely desire an education — desire it 
and strive for it with all his heart and soul? Try it 
and see. 



MISCELLANEOUS 381 

TEACHERS ! USE STANDARDIZED TESTS I 

By Mildred V. W. Patterson 

Educational Measurements! Standardized Tests! 
What do the words mean to you? It behooves every 
teacher to know, for they are matters of importance to 
aU, from the teacher of the smallest rural school to one 
in the largest city school system. 

It is not human nature to be intensely interested in 
those things of which we know little. If teachers can 
be made to see the vital need for educational measure- 
ments the motive will have been supplied for wanting 
to know more about them. 

Arithmetic is a subject in which the majority of 
teachers must give a daily mark. No doubt they con- 
sider that they do this most accurately, since a figure 
is either right or wrong and judgment does not enter 
into their mark as in the case of correcting a history 
or geography test. Let the teacher therefore take any 
pupil's arithmetic paper that has a number of mis- 
takes, make several exact copies of the paper, and 
ask a number of teachers to mark the paper in terms 
of per cent and return it to her. She should then tabu- 
late the different marks given it and note the range of 
the difference. 

Lest you may not take the trouble to do this, please 
stop and correct the following copy of an arithmetic 
paper and give it a percentage mark. 

Test Paper of a Fifth Grade Pupil in 

Multiplication 

(1) 310 (2) 623 (3) 5095 (4) 165 

4 7 6 40 

1240 4371 30546 660 



382 




PI 


2DAG0( 


^ica: 


LPEP 




(5) 


235 
23 

705 

470 

545 


(6) 


145 
206 

870 
290 

3770 


(7) 


$6.49 
8 

51.92 


(8)^x2=X 


(9) 


24 

2yz 


(10)>^ 


Lx>^=l 


(11) 


9.6 
4 


(12) 287 
.05 



48^ 384 143.5 

Now compare your mark with the following, which 
were given to this paper by a group composed almost 
entirely of principals and superintendents. 
Percentage mark given Number giving each mark 

60 2 

55 2 

50 4 

40 2 

30 10 

25 4 

Which mark did you guess ? Don't mind my calling it 
a guess, for does not the scattering difference from 
25% to 60% show that these marks were simply 
guesses, though all worked seriously and conscien- 
tiously to determine them? 

Does the above in any way explain the complaint of 
Mary Smith's mother that you do not mark Mary as 
high as Miss White, her former teacher, did, or the 
compliment of Johnny Jones' mother that she is so glad 
that she moved to your school district, because 
Johnny's card is so much better than it was at the 
other school? We may safely assume that no teacher 
can immediately transform a stupid child into a bright 



MISCELLANEOUS 383 

one or vice versa as the change in marks would seem 
to indicate. 

Had the pupil's height been measured and his weight 
taken at the time he left one teacher and again when 
he came to the next there would have been practically 
no difference in the measurements. Why? Because 
the same standard of measurement would have been 
employed by both teachers to determine the weight and 
height of the child. But alas what standard did we 
have for measuring his accomplishment in the various 
school subjects? Nothing except arbitrary standards 
made by each teacher, which give as many variances 
as there are teachers, so the marks really are but 
guesses no matter how much time and thought you may 
put in trying to make good guesses. 

The inaccuracy of teachers' marks has been the sub- 
ject of various investigations in school subjects. When 
I say inaccuracy of teachers' marks I use teachers in 
the broadest sense of the word, for we have observed 
from the above data that the principals and superin- 
tendents are no better "guessers" than classroom 
teachers. 

Assuming that I have shown the need for educational 
measurements I now state the object of the article. 
It is to urge teachers to begin the use of educational 
tests in their classes even though they have had no in- 
struction in their use, to the end that by this beginning 
they may see the value of and feel the need for a greater 
knowledge of them. To put it in a practical way, they 
are of personal value to the teacher because she is 
able to (1) know definitely just what her pupils can 
do when they come to her, instead of assuming un- 
knowingly the burden of poorly prepared pupils who 
have been passed on to her, (2) determine the exact 



384 PEDAGOGICAL PEP 

weakness of the class and each individual in the short- 
est possible time, (3) apply measures to remedy these 
weaknesses, (4) reclassify pupils according to their 
ability in each subject, (5) determine just how much 
progress each child is making, and (6) determine 
whether a pupil should be promoted or retained. 

Having no one to advise me in the work, the only 
method open to me was to read all I could about the 
tests, send for all available material, study the direc- 
tions diligently, give the tests, wonder at the results 
and resolve to learn all I could about them by special 
study as soon as an opportunity was given. 

I embarked on an unknown sea in my first use of the 
tests, but to-day that is unnecessary. Colleges and 
some of the state institutions give courses in this work, 
not only during the year but in their summer sessions. 
If it is impossible to attend such sessions one can at 
least obtain specialized advice from state departments 
of education, regarding the best tests available for 
various school subjects, the price, where they may be 
purchased, and so on. 

The cost need not deter one from making a start. 
For less than one dollar scales for testing spelling, 
handwriting, and composition work may be purchased 
wherewith any number of children may be tested any 
number of times in those subjects. The results de- 
rived from the use of these tests will lead you to pur- 
chase others. 

One need be no prophet to foretell that the day is 
near at hand when no order for the yearly school sup- 
plies will be complete unless including standardized 
tests; and when every applicant for a position will be 
asked if she understands their use. So it behooves 
progressive teachers to make a start in this direction. 



/ 



